Black and White
by Nightingale N7
Summary: Aedan Cousland joined the Templar Order at sixteen and has been proud of that fact ever since. Leliana never hid in Lothering and became a Seeker. And now that there are whispers of a blood mage cult in Ferelden, everyone's help is needed to put it down before it can truly begin. Only there's something else, something that could bring the Chantry itself to its knees. AU. ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** **I want to say this now; this story has nothing to do with Dawn of the Seeker whatsoever. I know it definitely could, considering the blood mage cult thing they share, but I've never watched Dawn of the Seeker, nor do I plan to anytime soon. As it goes on, however, I might change that if I get enough information on the movie itself, but as it stands now, I've no plans to tie this into it. This is a standalone AU that has nothing to do with the canon universe whatsoever. That being said, if you would rather read something canon, I really don't recommend you read anything I've written and ever will write. And for those of you who prefer AUs or don't care, welcome to the story and I hope you stick around! Thanks for reading! **

Aedan crossed his arms and frowned as his friend, Marcus, rolled the leather-clad man onto his back. He had a hole in his chest, distinctly left by the mage's lightning bolt. The clearing smelled distinctly of burned and rotting flesh, so Aedan never rightly expected to find this poor man alive, but it only cemented his decision to become a templar further. He might've had everything when he was in Highever, but he couldn't stand to sit around and do nothing when he could be protecting others. Aedan was always been the idiot to stand up and fight when it would be safer to turn and run, and joining the templars seemed far more fitting for his particular brand of stupidity than becoming a guard. He was far too good with a sword anyway.

So that was how Aedan Cousland ended up a knight in the Templar order. Boredom. Far too bored on many days of his life, watching mages or guarding some Chantry somewhere in Ferelden. But he'd be lucky enough to get action like this every few months or so. More than he'd get as a guard or soldier. And he had to work for his rank. That's what he liked the most about it. He wasn't treated any differently than another fool willing to hunt down blood mages. If he'd tried to become a soldier, he would've been given the rank of captain and dropped on a bunch of men far more experienced than he was, and been told to lead. With the templars, he was forced to learn and train and become a fighter before he was congratulated on becoming a member of the Order.

And that was all Aedan ever wanted. To be one of the guys, not someone coming from a wealthy background. So the day after he turned sixteen, off to Mother Mallol he went, asking about how he'd go about joining the Order, and then he was off again, this time to Denerim.

Which would eventually land him here in pursuit of a mage recently escaped from the Circle. Nearly ten years after that fateful decision. He hadn't regretted a day of it.

"On the bright side, we know we're on his trail," Marcus quipped.

"We have his phylactery," Aedan retorted. "Of course we know where he's going. And speaking of that, why don't you pull it out so we know where we're following him to?"

"I'm afraid that won't be necessary." Aedan whipped around, reaching for his sword, found himself face to face with a woman, and his heart practically stopped. A Seeker of Truth. And she was in Ferelden. Shit. Shit times ten! "I've caught your mage for you. He's at my camp."

"Could you hand him over?" Marcus asked.

She looked between the two of them, two templar knights, and decided she couldn't pass up on the chance to make their lives a little more difficult. Besides, she rarely got to have fun anymore, and pestering the templars could be fun.

"No," she said.

Marcus sputtered while Aedan did a double take. "You're joking," he said. "You have to be."

"No," she repeated.

"Why not?" Aedan demanded. He turned to face her, standing against a tree like she was completely unfazed by the two larger men standing before her. All she had was a bow, but Aedan was more than sure she could shoot them as quickly as he could draw his sword. He marched right up to her though, expression set in that of a determined one. He refused to go back to the tower without the mage, and he refused to be shown up by the Seeker.

She shrugged nonchalantly. "Because I might decide to have you...reprimanded for interfering with my investigation. Or I could just save you _that_ trouble, and burn the lyrium in your veins. Both are rather tempting ideas."

Aedan's brows furrowed. Neither of those sounded very appealing to him, but by the glint in her eye, he was pretty sure she wasn't bluffing. "Your investigation? Into what?"

The Seeker laughed, patting his shoulder, and he cringed. Aedan was never one for touching, especially around strangers. "Now why would that be any of your business, templar?"

"Because you've gone and stolen my mage," he growled.

"And you've interfered by chasing the man," she retorted, suddenly hostile instead of amused. "He's important to my investigation."

"I wasn't told of anyone else needing him alive," Aedan bit.

"Who said I needed him alive? I just needed him."

Aedan's eyes narrowed. "You killed him?!"

"He was a known blood mage," she said. "I saved countless lives putting him down, and saved you the trouble of tracking him to the coast. I would think you'd thank me for doing your job for you."

Aedan didn't know what to say. Marcus had been silent through their exchange, but he spoke up at that, saying, "Maybe you shouldn't be talking to a Seeker like that, Aedan..."

"You should listen to your friend," she said. "I could make your whole life fall apart in a matter of days."

"In case you haven't noticed, my life is devoted to the Maker," he said. "I don't have much going for me otherwise."

She stood up straighter, arms folded over her chest, and said, "I don't have time to deal with two templar blockheads. You want proof your mage is dead, my camp is back that way on the road. Goodbye." Then she turned on her heel and marched back into the trees, completely vanishing within the span of ten seconds. Aedan scowled after her, bristling, and whipped around to return to Marcus.

"What does the phylactery say?" he demanded. His fellow knight checked, and sure enough, it pointed after the Seeker. Aedan grumbled to himself in annoyance before he started walking back the way they came. It would've been nice to know a Seeker was going to show up and take this entire run away from them. Then they wouldn't have had to waste their time walking this far out from Lothering.

"S-shouldn't we go check that the mage is dead?" Marcus asked.

"If the Seeker has him, he's hers, dead or alive," Aedan replied. "You said it yourself. We shouldn't get involved with a Seeker's troubles."

* * *

Several wasted hours of long, dull walking, and they finally made it back to the sleepy little village. It was well past midnight and Aedan was plenty hungry, but he and Marcus needed to report to Ser Bryant. Although both Aedan and Marcus were stationed in the Circle, they were sent to aid the local Templars in tracking down the now-dead blood mage. The leader of the Templars here would probably appreciate knowing that the mage was dead thanks to the Orlesian Seeker they just met.

It had been several hours since they ran into her and her pointed jabs at templar stupidity, but now that his initial swagger had worn off, Aedan was concerned she'd make good on her threats to ruin him for messing up her job. Not that it would exactly be fair, per se, because he was only following orders, but she was a Seeker, and he was a simple templar. Knight or not, to the Seekers, he was just fodder.

"I'll go report if you find us some food," Aedan volunteered.

"Fine with me," Marcus said.

"Be ready to head out when we're done though. I don't want to waste any time on the way back," Aedan added. Marcus waved at him as he separated to head to the local tavern while Aedan walked up to the Chantry. A few templars were standing watch in the small courtyard and they saluted him as he jogged up the steps of the building, armor clanking along as he bounced. The only other templar of any rank other than himself or Ser Bryant, a man by the name of Maron, nodded in greeting. If Aedan wasn't busy, they'd salute each other and go on their merry ways, but he was. He was just about to enter the Chantry when a gloved hand captured his forearm.

"You'd best be careful," Ser Maron said.

Aedan frowned in confusion. "Why's that?"

"Seekers are showing up all over Ferelden," he said. "Haven't you heard? They think there's some plot against the Chantry going on here. Blood mages and everything."

Aedan laughed in disbelief. "That's not possible."

Maron's brows furrowed. "Either way, a Seeker is here. She's requested to have an escort to the Circle."

"Meaning Marcus and I will have to deal with her," Aedan surmised. His thoughts drifted back to the red-haired ass of a woman he met a few hours ago, and he sincerely hoped it wasn't her. Although, who else could it be? All he had to do is wonder how she beat them back. "Thank you for the warning, Ser Maron."

"Just be careful," he repeated as he released Aedan.

He nodded as he entered the building, inhaling the familiar scent of incense and lavender, the typical scent of a Chantry. The one in the tower smelled only faintly of it, as quite a few mages will spend the rest of the day coughing and sneezing if it's too strong. Aedan didn't exactly understand why they couldn't just find a way to fix a simple reaction such as sneezing. Mages are mages. They have magic, and they're generally smarter than the average templar (Aedan knows that's true, whether or not he likes to admit it). It should be simple for them to cure the sniffles.

Little light is afforded at this time of the night. Most, if not all, of the brothers and sisters have retired for the day, and few people come in for help. But the back room is always kept open, and is constantly monitored by a templar and a priest. Aedan walked back to it, where he was sure Ser Bryant was waiting for him and Marcus.

He was not at all surprised by the sound of voices drifting to him. They're hushed and speaking quickly, probably trying to finish their discussion before he made it back there. The sound of the doors banging shut behind him would've been enough to alert anyone inside of his presence, but his robes and armor were loud enough to tell them exactly where he was. And he was trying to avoid intruding; if that Seeker was here, he'd do well not to piss her off further. He just wished his rational mind had taken over sooner and kept him from getting snappy in the first place.

"Ser Bryant?" he called.

Both whispers stopped abruptly. The silence dragged for a moment, but the templar spoke up. "This way, Cousland." Aedan scowled at the lack of being given the proper respect. Just because hewas in charge of the templars stationed there didn't mean he was any better than Aedan. Besides, Aedan actually got up and hunted the mages who escape when he was told to. Not to mention they were both the same rank.

Aedan trudged to the back room regardless to find the Revered Mother, Ser Bryant, and (unsurprisingly) the red-haired Seeker from before. The way they stared at him made him uncomfortable, but he said nothing and did nothing to betray the feeling.

"I was coming to tell you the mage was apprehended," Aedan said. The woman raised a brow as he finished with, "We tracked him into the Brecilian Forest where the Seeker informed us of her intervention."

"It wasn't much of an intervention if it was my job to retrieve the mage before he escaped," she replied. "It was more like you interfered."

"Yes, _we_ interfered with _you._ "

"So you want to take me up on my previous offer?" The woman crossed her arms, both brows raised, and Aedan scowled as his sign of backing down. She seemed rather pleased with his decision and looked back to Ser Bryant. "Allow me to thank you for your help, templar. And for volunteering my new friends for my trip to the Circle."

"What?!" Aedan demanded. "No, no, no, no. No. I'm not traveling with any Seeker anywhere to do anything. Get someone else to do it."

"And here I was thinking we were getting along just wonderfully."

Ser Bryant frowned. "You're heading to the Circle with Marcus. What's the problem with taking our friend with you?"

Aedan's jaw dropped so far it nearly unhinged. "B-because she's a Seeker!" he sputtered.

"Seekers are just as human as you and I, boy," the Revered Mother said.

"Unfortunately for you," she said with an amused light in her eyes, "it looks like I'm coming along whether you like it or not." She said her thanks to Ser Bryant and the Revered Mother again before starting past Aedan for the doors. "Come, templar. We leave immediately."

Aedan glared at Ser Bryant one last time before following this strange woman from the Chantry.


	2. Chapter 2

Leliana wasn't exactly impressed, to say the least.

The stuttering Templar, the one with closely cropped blond hair and brown eyes, kept his distance from her for the first few days. He'd only respond to things his fellow said, and would look down nervously if she tried to ask him a question. A fool, she decided. A fool who would probably have a panic attack if they got into a real fight.

And the other Templar, a man with unkempt black hair and green eyes, made it clear he wasn't happy with her from the beginning. He protested about her company up until the minute they left Lothering, at which point he apparently decided it was time to just pretend she didn't exist. When he didn't blatantly ignore her, he was nice enough, and smarter than she thought any Templar could be (but not straight away). In her experience, the Templars were brutes meant to keep mages in check. Then again, to the Templars, _she_ was the brute meant to keep _them_ in check.

In all, these two were nothing alike, yet they seemed to be friends, and even silently agreed talking to their Orlesian companion was a bad idea. Leliana knows she has no one to blame but herself, as she did get a little drastic with her threats, but men will get over that. It's the fact that she dealt with their mage that has the black-haired one pissed off.

So at camp, when they're a days ride (but two days of walking) from reaching the easternmost tip of Lake Calenhad, Leliana decides to try and change their opinion of her. Not by much, no, that would be foolish. But she could at least attempt to show them she wasn't the ass they thought she was.

They're both sitting by their small fire, eating the remnants of their supper, when Leliana gets up to join them. She had been sitting on a boulder next to her horse, looking over her map for any possible shortcuts they could take to make a three week trek to the Circle shorter, but came up with nothing. She could appreciate that about Fereldans; they liked to have direct routes to everything. Unfortunately, that didn't apply in the wilderness, where every path was made by hunters who knew the area.

Not for the first time, Leliana thinks of just heading north on her own. It would be faster on horseback, but she also is smart enough to realize one bow won't be much between her and a group of bandits. Safety in numbers, though she's not sure who would be brave or foolish enough to attack someone that's blatantly in the Seekers.

As she sits, her armor rustles more than it usually would, and she winces. For the longest of times, her survival hinged on how quiet she could be, how long she could last without being discovered. Even after being free of her former master for so long, Leliana still cringed at any loud noises she made. She didn't think that would ever go away, or not anytime soon. Though, she is glad she doesn't have to wear anything near the massive plate her two companions wear. Or the skirts. Templars are supposed to be intimidating, hardened warriors that mages fear. Yet they wear skirts. Things that could hinder their movement in combat. Things that prevent them from riding a horse to track mages faster.

Leliana will never understand that.

"I think..." She pauses to breathe out a sigh. "I think we got off on the wrong foot."

The black-haired one snorts. "That would be an understatement if we had any foot to get off on."

She resists the urge to roll her eyes. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry I acted the way I did when we first met."

"Oh I knew what you meant," he replies. "But if you're going to make my life difficult, I'm going to do the same for yours."

Leliana sighs, massaging her temples. "Fine, fair enough." The Templar shoveled in another mouthful of the stew his friend had made earlier while she was talking. It wasn't bad, but it was a little too salty for Leliana's taste. "If we're going to be traveling together, I think we should know each other's names. It's nicer than shouting 'Templar!' or 'Seeker!' at each other, don't you think?"

As he chewed, he thought about it. It would be nice to get on a friendlier level with the Orlesian, he decided. If only to keep her from doing anything untoward.

"Aedan," he says. "My name is Aedan."

A distinctly Fereldan name in origin. Leliana already knew his name from the various uses of it on the first day. Truth be told, she already knew both of their names, but she figured it would be polite to have them tell her before she used them.

"Aedan...?" she asks, fishing for a last name.

He shakes his head. "Just Aedan."

She looks to the other Templar, brow raised questioningly. "And your name?"

"Marcus," he says, looking up only to say his name before his eyes dart back down to his bowl of stew.

Aedan's chewing a mouthful when he asks, "And what about you, Seeker? What's your name?"

"Leliana," she says, redirecting her attention to the braver, and more conversational, of the two.

He frowns. "Sounds Fereldan."

She shrugs a shoulder. "I'd hope so, considering it is."

"Really?" Aedan actually seems halfway interested. "Why would an Orlesian give their daughter a Fereldan name?"

"My mother was from Denerim," Leliana replies. "She was a servant for an Orlesian noblewoman during the occupation. When it became too dangerous for her to stay due to the loss the Orlesians faced, she returned to Orlais, and my mother took me, and followed."

"Ah," he says. "Makes sense now." Leliana offers a small smile and, surprisingly, he returns it. "You know, you could've been nicer the other day."

Leliana starts to respond, to _agree,_ when Marcus sputters and shoves Aedan's shoulder. "Don't say things like that! She's a Seeker!"

Aedan frowns and looks between the two of them before saying, "Well, she had to be a human being at one point in her life to become a Seeker. It wasn't rude, Marcus. Calm down."

She laughs, shaking her head, and says, "I could've been nicer, yes. I wasn't exactly happy, though. The mage nearly set my horse on fire and had taken several arrows to shades to finally die. I was in a bad mood, and I apologize." Both Templars stare at her, shocked, and she shrugs. "What? You said I had to be human before to become a Seeker. Well, I'm still human."

"You're a Seeker," Aedan insists.

Leliana arches a red brow. "And a human."

"But you're a Seeker."

"Does that mean I can't be human?"

"Yes."

She blinks, confused. "Why's that?"

"B-because Seekers aren't people," Marcus says nervously. "They're too good for the Templars, so they advance and stare at us from the shadows in the tower."

Aedan scoffs indignantly. "Now you sound like a superstitious house wife. Shut up."

They spend another hour or so talking about whatever comes to mind when Aedan decides its time for him to get some rest. Marcus, after casting a fearful glance in Leliana's direction, agrees, and the two knights return to their bedrolls. Leliana stays up anyway, ignoring her own exhaustion, and goes back to the boulder she was sitting on previously. Her horse has wandered around to the other side in search of fresher grass, but she trusts it to stay in the immediate vicinity of their camp. It has been trained to do so, as have all the horses the Seekers use. This one had been named Onyx, most likely due to the color of his coat. Leliana chose him specifically so he'd be hard to see at night.

She climbs up to the top, swings her legs around, and settles in to keep watch, like she had every night so far. The Templars thought she slept when they did, and yes, she did sleep, but only when there was an hour or so before dawn, and then she'd have Onyx stop doing whatever he was doing to keep watch for her. She had only accumulated six hours of sleep in the last few days, and it was already starting to wear on her. Eventually she would have to give in and get some real sleep, but for now, her training kept her up, and she sat with her thoughts for the next seven hours of boredom.

At first, Leliana thought about her two companions. Aedan was still suspicious of her, but not unbearably so like the other. Marcus, she wondered, somehow became a Templar despite his lack of any courage. Well, that wasn't fair. He could be perfectly brave, but she hadn't known him all that long, and he gave her no reason to suspect he was. After all, the Templars didn't promote idiots. Yes they did. They just promoted the ones with the most brains, which wasn't saying much. She had yet to meet a Templar with one. They were all fools with swords and power, never a good combination. And unfortunately for her companions, the ones she worked around always found themselves dead from their inability to follow her orders. They all have too much swagger, or not enough, and it costs them their lives. It was the main reason for her having gone so deeply into Ferelden on her own. Typically, Leliana would have stopped at the Circle first to get a few Templar idiots' help, and then she would have gone on her little adventure. But, despite their stupidity, Templars were people too, and wasting their lives wasn't fair, or right.

And now she found herself in the company of two more morons. The only thing Marcus had going for him was his brain; he seemed less prone to heroics to Leliana, but capable enough. Aedan, while brave enough to talk to her, had the appeal of a man led by his urges rather than his head, and could be dangerous. Leliana found herself happy with the two she had been given; they were a good combination. Perhaps that was why they were friends.

Then her thoughts drifted to how they met. Yes, she was a little standoffish, and that always brought her more trouble than help, but it was in her personality ever since...since she had to flee to the Chantry. She didn't trust very many people after what Marjolaine did to her. The priestesses in Val Royeaux, the few she actually did explain her past to, were far more understanding than they had any right to be. But they also told her that her past would be more helpful to everyone if she put her talents elsewhere. And then she ended up a Seeker of Truth, and by default, Ferelden. As a Seeker, Leliana was protecting mages being tortured and raped by abusive Templars, and protecting other Templars from being punished when they did nothing wrong. Of course, she could only go somewhere if the First Enchanter had called for assistance, or if the Chantry thought something was worth investigating. And with rumors coming in from Ferelden of what could possibly be the biggest blood mage ring Thedas has ever seen, she was dispatched with nine others to come get to the bottom of it. They had split up at the border, going off on their own to gather leads and return them to their fellows once a few months had passed. It was a strangely solitary lifestyle that Leliana found herself leading.

And the main reason for her scrambling to get back to the Circle. She was running out of time to meet their deadline. Sadly, she hadn't gathered much anyway, and she got the feeling her allies hadn't had any luck either. The most Leliana had gotten was the strange signet ring tucked into her pocket.

She pulled it out now, turning it over and over in her hands in a vain attempt to recognize the crest. For all her Fereldan blood, she didn't know anything about this country, or the people inside of it.

Well...that wasn't a fair statement. She knew they didn't trust Orlesians, and were prone to throwing rocks when one showed up. Damn villagers. She still had a bruise on her arm from that.

Leliana gave a frustrated sigh as she ran her thumb over the laurel stamped into the metal. It was dirty and covered in dried blood, probably from the mage when he'd casted spells that few would approve of. Or from when she killed him. That was also possible. But aside from its crest, there were no identifying marks or words, and she had no choice but to shove it back in her pocket, where it was safe.

The Seeker remained awake for her allotted time, keeping her eyes moving over every shadow and dark place. And when it was time for her to get what little rest she could, she gave two sharp whistles that Onyx would understand before sliding down to a more comfortable place to sleep.

Unfortunately for her, sleep didn't come so easily despite her exhaustion, and what little she managed to grab was filled with memories, that although good, reminded her of her past, and of a woman she really didn't want to think about. So when Aedan went to rouse her, she nearly kicked him in the face, and didn't bother apologizing. The lack of rest was starting to wear on her temper and her mood, and thinking of her former lover didn't help. She broke down the fire pit while the Templars packed up their equipment, then they were off without so much as a 'good morning.'

Leliana's mood remained sour throughout the morning. When Marcus got up the courage to ask her if she wanted some of their jerky, she snapped at him, and didn't even bother regretting it. That was probably the last time he was ever going to talk to her. Not that she caught herself caring at that moment. She was far more concerned with their lack of speed, and she was halfway through telling herself why getting on Onyx and riding ahead was a good idea when Aedan sidled up next to her.

"What do you want?" she snaps.

He shrugs nonchalantly, rustling his armor loudly enough that she winces. "Oh, nothing," he says. She scowls as soon as the words leave his mouth; she knows that tone. He's teasing her. "You just looked extra sulk-y today and I thought I'd come up and try my luck at making it better."

"I'd sulk less if you weren't pestering me with inane questions."

"It wasn't a question."

"No, but you were going to ask me one, and I figured I'd get the snapping out of the way early."

Aedan sighs and puts up his hands. "Fine, Seeker. I'll just go back and talk with Marcus, then. Let me know if you get hungry."

After he fell back to rejoin his Templar counterpart, Leliana let out her own sigh. She wasn't giving them much cause to like her, and if she was going to check the mages to see who was helping this supposed ring of blood mages, she was going to need all the allies in the Templars she could get. This just wasn't going to be a good day for her.


	3. Chapter 3

_"Becoming a Seeker isn't an easy task."_

 _Leliana shrugged a shoulder before falling backwards onto her bed. "No, but did you expect it to be?"_

 _The man across from her chuckled. She didn't know him, and he didn't know her. But then again, no one in this tiny room knew each other. For those of them who had little combat training, they spent their days out with the Templars learning how to use a sword and a shield. And for those like Leliana, and her counterparts in the small room, with enough training to keep the Chantry satisfied, they spent their time meditating. Thinking on themselves. A few days of their week were spent out with the other five, beating them into submission like they were told to do. It was one of those days now, and Leliana had misfired one of her arrows, and taken a shield straight to the chest. She didn't think she'd ever catch her breath after that; the woman she had been paired with had muscle._

 _"So," someone across the room said. The only other woman to come into this with fighting experience aside from Leliana. "What do you think they have us do after the first year? It's almost up for us."_

 _"I suppose we do some more mediating," someone added. A tall, stocky man with a constant frown and dark hair._

 _"Ten years of meditating? There has to be something else," the fifth said._

 _"Does it matter?" Leliana snapped. She was tired, and the four others she slept with never shut up. It made her cranky. Cranky beyond belief. "We'll find out when we get there, won't we? Stop worrying."_

 _The man she'd originally spoken to said, "It does matter. This is the rest of our lives we're talking about here. What if they give us ridiculous things to look into? Blood mages to hunt with the Templars?"_

 _"They wouldn't do that," the other woman said. "We don't go through the same training as they do. We don't watch mages; we watch the Templars."_

 _"You're saying 'we' like we are Seekers already," the stocky one said. "We're not. I thought they made that abundantly clear."_

 _"They said we're Seekers if we don't plan on quitting," she said. "And I don't plan to. Do any of you?"_

 _Four negatives rose from around the room, Leliana being the last to speak up. She didn't intend to quit after this first year was up. No, far from it. But she didn't know if she would be able to take the complacency they might have to put up with. This first year...none of the Order counted it as a year of the real training. Any of the Seekers Leliana spoke to said this was a stroll down a beach compared to what came next._

 _But she seemed to be the only one brave enough to get curious and ask. That was what set her apart from her fellows, why it may be easier for her to handle. She was brave; bravery would be sorely needed in the years to come._

This was year three (or technically two according to the actual Seekers) for her and the nine she had been sent with. And they weren't wrong. It had been hell itself getting through everything she did. Ingesting ridiculous amounts of lyrium with the others, sitting through mindbogglingly horrific mental abuse, among other things she'd have normally considered fiendish. She wasn't sure why she didn't now. Perhaps because they weened them into it?

The mental scarring was slight at first. Small things to make you twitch. But once it stopped working, it got stronger, and scarier, and required more courage to walk into everyday. And once they had all gotten through the first stage (usually requiring a year and a half) they started with the lyrium. First it was dust, sprinkled over the backs of their hands. It would burn and itch and make them squirm for hours on end, even after they had all gone through the process they were assured would take all remnants of the dust away. And once they had built an immunity up to that, they were ordered to lay on their stomachs while droves of it were heaped onto their bare backs. It made sleeping nearly impossible.

And thinking of all of it again...Leliana didn't even bat an eyelash. She, like the rest, had built up an immunity to the sting of lyrium dust.

Unfortunately for them, phase three of the lyrium training came in year four. The year all Seekers have claimed to enjoy the most, although Leliana had no idea why, nor did she want to. She had told everyone else to stop fussing over the future, so she took that advice to heart as well, and pushed it from her mind.

Year four was still a few months away. This was year three. Field experience. Doing important work for the Chantry. Apparently Seeker recruits would even be entrusted with important investigations such as looking for a blood mage cult. But at this point, Leliana felt like little more than a glorified Templar. Aedan probably had more proper training than she did. She knew he had to take lyrium, as did Marcus, and she knew that was in her future, if only for a brief time, but she couldn't help wondering what the point of Seekers were if all they did was look into disruptions in Circles.

"So tell me something, Aedan."

He looked up from his feet, brow quirked. "Oh? And what could the Seeker possibly want to know?"

She huffed, caught between being amused and annoyed. They had developed a rapport over the last few days; it was better than her relationship with Marcus anyway. "I was curious about what you could do, being a Templar and all."

"Is that so?" he questioned. "They don't teach this to Seekers?"

"I'm sure the Chantry does at some point," she admitted with a simple shrug. "But I've only been a Seeker for three years, technically two. I'm still a recruit by their standards."

"Really? And how long does your training last?"

"A decade," she said, squinting up at the sky. "Why? You find that surprising?"

He laughed. "No, but that makes me wonder what they make you do for those ten years."

"Well, the first year, what's called 'year zero' and doesn't count for anything, is physical training. Some of us with experience would beat the snot out of the recruits who had no combat training. The rest of the time, they'd be beaten by Templars while we studied how to control our emotions and ourselves. Last year we spent being exposed to lyrium on far more personal levels than you Templars do."

Aedan scoffed. "Lady, we drink that stuff."

"And? I've had a vial of it once before. I've laid under lyrium dust for hours while having to keep my eyes open. We weren't allowed to pass out from the pain. If we did, we'd have to do it again."

"I suppose you never passed out?"

"We all did at least once."

His brows drew together and he looked over at Marcus, who was fiddling with their now useless phylactery. "That's...horrible. I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" Leliana frowned. "For what? It's part of my training."

Aedan hesitated before adding, "And you just let the Chantry treat you like that?"

She looked over at him, brow raised. "To keep Templars from beating innocent mages? To do what you can't? Yes. I think it's worth it."

"So they sent one Seeker, one _trainee,_ out to investigate whatever it is you're investigating?"

"I can already best you in a fight," she snapped. "Your smites won't affect me, and I'm smarter."

He blinked, astonished, before barking a laugh. "You think so?"

Her eyes narrowed on the man. "I know so."

The corner of Aedan's mouth quirked up in a cocky grin. "Then we'll just have to see about that tonight, won't we?"

* * *

Leliana was adjusting her saddlebags to conceal her quiver when he called out to her. She paused, staring at the brown dirt that she spent her day crunching along over, before looking over her shoulder at the Templar. He was standing on the opposite side of their fire, the red and blues of his robes concealed by the shadows of his armor. The way the firelight bounced off him...it gave him an almost unnatural, ghoulish appearance, and Leliana's stomach twisted into knots.

The rapport they had developed over the last couple of weeks didn't help her sudden fear of Aedan.

"What's wrong, Seeker? Getting second thoughts?" he teased.

She swallowed hard, squeezing her eyes shut as she turned back to Onyx, and pulled her sword belt off the pommel of her saddle. "Of course not," she said, adopting the same monotone she developed for speaking to whomever was teaching her whatever. "What gave you that idea?"

He smirked at her, giving his sword a few experimental twirls, as she walked into the light. Leliana had her belt back in place in a matter of seconds, shifting it around until the weight of her longsword was comfortable over her left hip, and the crossguard of her dagger didn't dig into the small of her back.

"One weapon, Seeker," Aedan said. "You do that, then I won't use my shield. Deal?"

She huffed indignantly. "Your shield won't make it any harder for me to defeat you."

The Templar barked a laugh much the same as earlier in the day. "You're so confident that you'll win, and yet, you don't know a lick of what I've been trained for."

"I know I've gone through tougher in a month than you went through in three."

"That's why you're the Seeker and I'm the Templar," he replied. "So, how about it? No shield from me, and no dagger from you?"

"If we're doing one weapon, I'll use my bow."

Marcus, who had been silent for a good portion of the day, and just as quiet since their introductions, spoke up. "You're both cocky bastards who will end up getting stabbed when they go against someone who really does have better training."

Aedan glanced between the two of his companions. "Few people in Thedas have better training than we do, Marc."

He shrugged a shoulder. "Not an excuse to get cocky."

"It's a deal," Leliana interrupted, looking back to Aedan with a sharp glare. He drew his brows together as he looked between her and Marcus again, but shrugged his shield off his back, and tossed it to the ground. In turn, Leliana reached back for her dagger and threw it aside. The smirk that crept over Aedan's face was actually adorable in a strange way to her, and before she knew it, he'd managed to distract her with a simple look.

He had drawn his sword during that time, and was watching her expectantly, a lone brow raised. "Something the matter, Leliana?"

The use of her name snapped her back to reality. While he knew her name, he didn't often use it. He referred to her as "Seeker" regardless of how many times she asked him to call her otherwise, so she'd given up on it a few days after names had been exchanged. And now, with only a few days left until they would reach the Circle, he said it.

"No," she said, shaking her head dismissively. Her hand went to the hilt of her longsword and she pulled it from the scabbard, hoping the noise of leather on steel would distract him. It seemed to. His eyes locked on the blade in her hand, seemingly surprised with how easily she seemed to wield it.

"They teach you how to use a sword?" he asked.

"No," Leliana repeated. And before he could pry—she saw him start to ask further questions—she leapt forward in an onslaught of blows. Usually, she would have used her dagger to slip past his defenses, use it to overwhelm like she had been taught to, but she didn't have it, and as a result, he didn't have a shield. When she said that wouldn't affect how well she did against him, she lied.

All she could do was thank the Maker that part of her training required her to be able to fight with both hands, both weapons alone should she be disarmed.

Unfortunately, Aedan recovered rather quickly, blocked a blow she sent for his chest, and with a flick of his wrist, had their crossguards locked together. As her brows furrowed, Aedan's smirk returned, and he used his size to shove her back. Leliana's foot caught an errant stone and she nearly tripped, but she caught herself with her free hand, and as he went to end their sparring match before it could truly begin, she shoved her foot into his abdomen. While it probably hurt her more than him, it got him off her case, and gave her time to get back on her feet.

"Sneaky trick, that," Aedan remarked.

"When you've got no choice between life or death, you'll do whatever it takes, including risk blowing out your knee to survive a little bit longer."

He raised a brow and nodded curtly. "Like a cornered animal."

"If you were in that sort of situation, would you not take the option that might possibly save your life?"

Aedan shrugged, and went back at her immediately. She raised her arm to send his sword skidding off the blade of hers, sending a jolt of pain through her bones. With a mental curse, she realized that not only was he good at what he did, but he had the strength to just push her over and win.

It was going to be a long night.


	4. Chapter 4

_Down the hall, she could hear one of the others, probably Tye, screaming in pain. He couldn't handle the lyrium burns. Not as well as the rest of them could. They had all started out screaming like he did, barely able to stand after being exposed as long as they were. Now some of them could tolerate it with only tears and the occasional cry of pain._

 _Leliana was not one of those people. Neither was Tye._

 _"Are you ready?"_

 _She looked back at the Seeker behind her. He was holding a small, clear cup, and her skin twitched at the sight of the pink powder within. If she hated any part of their training, it was this. It was pure torture, and she'd had enough of that with the Orlesians._

 _Her only answer was a terse nod. Might as well get it over with._

That was the last day she saw her friend. He was gone the next morning, and a few weeks later, another recruit had been transfered in from somewhere in the Free Marches. Ostwick, she thought. She didn't care to ask. Tye was gone, and she had been alone from there on out. The closest thing she had to a friend...now that was Aedan, and they didn't do much more than take shots and beat each other to shit every other night at camp. Leliana had won their first few exchanges, but between her lack of sleep, and how tough he was, he started winning. The first time she lost...she slept like a rock the entire night.

It was a relief for her when she finally saw the spire of the Circle rising out of Lake Calenhad. And they had reached their destination two days ahead of the expected time, probably from her being pushy about it.

"Ah, finally," Aedan said from behind.

"Home," Marcus said.

"It took us long enough," she grumbled in response. Leliana only had to debate about it for thirty seconds before she stopped tugging Onyx along and pulled herself into the horse's saddle. He danced a little under her weight and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Ridiculous animal.

"What are you doing?"

She glanced over her shoulder at the black-haired Templar watching her through narrowed eyes. "Riding ahead. I've wasted enough time on the road, and I need to report to your Knight-Commander before joining my friends tonight."

He frowned. "So...you're leaving."

"Yes...? What's so hard to understand about that?"

Aedan huffed at her and shook his head. "Fine, fine. I suppose this is goodbye, then. It was...nice to meet you, Leliana."

"I'll be at the tower for some weeks still."

"And I'll be busy sitting through Harrowings and glaring at mages while you're busy glaring at my fellows and I."

She laughed. "Less glaring and more staring in confusion, more like."

He grinned up at her. "Well, then I suppose we'll talk some other time."

"If you're lucky, perhaps," she replied. "It was nice to meet you both, and...thank you for allowing me to tag along."

Aedan nodded while Marcus shuffled his feet a bit and said his own farewells, and then she spun her horse, and off she went.

* * *

Leliana was still in awe of the enormity of the tower. Sure, she had seen grand buildings plenty of times in her life, but nothing quite so...large. And certainly nothing so large in Ferelden. She had been to Denerim before; the palace wasn't as tall, but it was much wider. And it was said to be built by the Imperium! She could see why now. It had a certain...flair to it that Fereldan architecture lacked. She found it fascinating.

After dismounting and leaving Onyx where it seemed her companions were leaving their horses, she made her way over to the dock. A Templar was standing guard with the ferryman, but at the sight of her, his expression darkened and he looked away.

The Templars must have it ingrained to hate Seekers, she decided. It would only make this harder.

He stood aside, or maybe she did—it was hard to tell who was what under all that armor sometimes—and allowed her to get into the small boat. The ferryman gave the Templar a look when he turned to face the inn again, waiting for Leliana to settle before pushing the boat off the dock.

The man had a pinched face and old eyes; he had probably been doing this for most, if not all, of his life. "Lots of your folk passing through these parts, miss."

Leliana's head snapped up and she frowned. Guess he didn't miss much. "What of it?"

He shrugged. "Nothin' wrong with it," he said. "Just got the Templars all tense. Not used to seeing any of you out this way, and not in this number."

Her frown deepened. "The First Enchanter never called for a Seeker before?"

"Oh, I'm sure he 'as. Just not when I was around. Templars here...they're gentler to the mages," he said. "Not much cause for you to come out and investigate Templars who behave."

"That's...good to hear," Leliana said, tearing her gaze away to stare out over the lake. "A refreshing change from what I've seen."

"And what have you seen, watching Templars and the like?"

She shook her head. "Not much. I haven't had to...look into any issues yet. But I've heard stories from the others. Some of the things these Templars do...it's horrible. Cruel. Abusive."

"Does that make you proud to be where you are?"

Her head whipped around again and she fixed him with an intense stare. "Who are you to be asking such questions?"

"No one important, miss," he replied conversationally. "Just the ferryman."

That response set off warning bells, but she tucked it away in her mind for later. She looked away again, shifting her glare to the waters below. The sound of his rowing was soft; she could barely hear the water moving, but even then, the world around her was quiet. Almost like this part of Ferelden was dead. It bothered her, the silence. Usually, she was perfectly happy with peace and quiet. It had become a ritual for her to seek out somewhere quiet during what little free time she had. When she wasn't sleeping or eating, she was meditating or going through some form of torture in disguise. While the idea of literal torture sent her reeling in any normal situation, the things the Seekers did to her and her friends...it didn't bother her in the slightest. And when she wasn't going through any of that, which was rare, she found herself in a corner somewhere, curled in on herself as she stared off into space, contemplating the last few years of her life.

Sad, that was the conclusion she reached every time. Looking back on it now, there were warning signs. Her master wasn't one to let her enemies get ahead of her, and the instant Marjolaine had started looking at Leliana like a potential threat, was the instant her fate was sealed.

It was a mistake she intended to never repeat.

Not long thereafter, the ferryman was tying his boat to the dock on the shore of the tower's island, and Leliana hopped out, ignoring the slightly weak feeling in her knees. She looked over her shoulder at the man, giving him one final look to commit his face to memory, before following the path up to the doors of the Circle. A Templar pushed the massive iron doors open for her, a gesture she responded to with a polite nod. He grunted back.

"—is ludicrous! You're implying Templars allowed a group of mages to pass through their area and set up a—"

"That's exactly what I'm implying, Knight-Commander," a familiar voice said. "Two of ten Seekers have gone missing, one found _dead_ in Highever, and one that we're still expecting. Your escaped mages have caused more trouble than they should have! A cult of blood mages, Templar! We have evidence of Templar involvement!"

"That's an outrageous lie!"

Leliana had been standing half in, half out of the tower to listen to Leon, the one of their group who had been deemed the leader, argue to the Knight-Commander, confused and in awe of what she was hearing. Three of her friends...never to be seen again.

"Get in or get out, Seeker," the Templar snarled. She gave him a dark look after whipping around to face him, but marched inside and up to her counterpart immediately.

"You said one of our ten was found dead?" Leliana asked, stepping into the middle of the conversation before it could come to blows.

Leon shifted his gaze between the two of them, and Leliana was secretly glad to see the relief hidden in his eyes. He had been worried for her. "Yes, Armand. A group of townsfolk found him choking on his blood outside of Highever a few weeks ago. The Templars sent word that they were going to give him the usual pyre."

Her eyes went wide. Armand...he was close to her. Just like she was close with Tye before he left, she was close to Armand. And he was dead.

She felt tears sting her eyes, but she bit them back and nodded.

"Alice and Luke have gone missing from Amaranthine and Denerim, respectively," Leon continued. "Once we've settled our business here, we're headed to Highever to investigate Armand's death. See if it has anything to do with this blood magic."

Leliana just nodded again.

"You have free roam of the Circle," the Knight-Commander growled through gritted teeth, "as I've said before. Make yourselves at home."

"Of course," Leon replied. "If you don't mind, I have some catching up to do with my friend here, and then we'll go through today's inspection."

He grumbled to himself before shuffling off. Leliana watched him go with furrowed brows, deciding to focus on his awkward gait than the fact that her friend was gone. She could feel Leon's eyes on the side of her head, waiting for her to direct her attention back to him, but she couldn't bring herself to do so. Her mind was still trying to come to terms with Armand's death. It didn't seem real.

 _"Now you all understand that this is to be treated professionally, like you're actually members of our order, correct?" Ten simultaneous nods went up around the room. "This is real. It's not a training exercise, it's what we do. You_ can _die out there. We don't expect all of you to return, though we pray that you do."_

We're expendable, she thought. That's why we're here. Because we're not worth anything yet.

It was a bitter thought. She wanted to be worth something. All her life, she had thought that she was, but that changed when Marjolaine tried to kill her. She was expendable and worth nothing, even pledged to the Chantry as she was.

Leliana just wanted to matter to someone.

"Here." Leon's voice snapped her out of her thoughts as he pressed something into her hand. She knew what it was without having to look at it. The same pendant they were all given after going through that year of hell. The one that marked them as Seekers, or what they'd eventually all hope to aspire.

"He'd want you to have it," Leon said. Leliana could hear his voice catching as the words left his mouth. "You two were close."

She shook her head as her fingers closed over the amulet. "Not...not like that."

"I know," he said, setting a comforting hand on her shoulder. It didn't feel like much but a weight on her. Still, she didn't shake him off. "Come on. It's time we ran over our findings with the others. We've been waiting on you."

Leliana nodded dumbly. "Lead on."

He gave her a friendly smack on the back before starting over the threshold. She followed, still clutching at Armand's necklace, excitement and awe far lessened by the news of her friend's death. It made her numb, a cold feeling spreading from her chest through her limbs. It was bitterness and regret, anger that she couldn't fix unless she killed the person responsible. The feeling wasn't new. She had felt it many times since joining the Seekers.

Bitterness was becoming the norm for her. Bitter, angry, and cold.

She was generally the only one in the barracks that was ever serious. She couldn't remember the last time she laughed.

Well...she could. With those two Templar idiots. Aedan was good at making her laugh.


	5. Chapter 5

_How do you explain fear?_

 _Leliana didn't know. She was always scared of waking up the next morning, knowing what they had to go through just to be allowed to go eat breakfast. Sleep rarely came for her, and she could hear the others tossing and turning as they fought a losing battle to find it. She would just lie there, staring at the ceiling, the wall, or Armand's back. Sometimes he'd roll over, offer a friendly smile, just stare while they both tried to calm down enough to sleep._

 _It never worked._

 _She felt like a child, being so constantly afraid of the next day, being afraid of her own dreams. Outwardly, Leliana acted like she was fine. Quiet, dedicated, and brave enough to keep going. Inwardly, she wanted to scream and tear her hair out._

 _She wouldn't quit, but she wasn't sure how long she could keep up with this._

How long had she been standing there? It felt like forever. She was only supposed to be here for an hour, but it got boring standing around and staring off into space, having to watch the Templars. All they did was stand around and stare off into space. Why did she have to stand here and do nothing? Didn't the Templars do enough for the lot of them?

Oh right. Because she volunteered for this.

Leon had asked the rest of them who wanted to go watch the library, and Leliana had immediately offered to do it, foolishly thinking she'd see something interesting. No, not this late at night. All the mages would do is pace and read, while the Templars glared at anyone out of their uniform.

It was ridiculous in her mind.

So Leliana stood there, making the occasional lap around the enormous room, glaring at Templars when they'd shoot her a dirty look. The hour felt ridiculously long, and her skin was crawling the entire time, like she was expecting something to happen.

It didn't take long for that feeling to be given credit.

She was halfway through one of her rounds towards the apprentice quarters when someone started shouting from the stairs. The Templars scrambled to go check it out, but she was already there, lurching to a stop in the doorway. It was more confusing than anything. Three of the children were hidden beneath the table, one mage was watching, and two Templars had a younger girl pinned to one of the bookshelves.

Leliana blinked. What the hell?

A moment passed before it clicked. Templars were shuffling behind her, trying to get past, but when she understood, it was far too late for them and their friends anyway.

It was simple enough for her to get a running start, jump up the steps, and slide across the table dominating the center of the room. Just as simple to grab the idiot by the collar of his robes and throw him face first into the edge of the table too. The Templars...they were a different matter altogether.

As she turned, she could hear the sound of air splitting, and she rolled out of the way, bouncing up onto her feet. Her eyes locked with his, glazed over, staring at some distant point she couldn't see. He was gone.

When he went to swing his sword again, she slipped past his arm, drove her foot into the back of his knee, and plunged one of her arrows into his throat. She shoved him to the floor while he coughed and sputtered, diverting her attention to his counterpart just as quickly. He swung at her side, but she caught the weapon, twisted, and hit the side of his head with her fist. Unfortunately, all that succeeded in doing was pissing him off further, and he had a good grip on her armor. He used it as leverage to jerk her back around in front of him. And being as slight as she was, she couldn't stop him. His elbow hit her collarbone with enough force that she could feel the bone give.

Despite how much that hurt, she ignored it, and hit his elbow with her own until she was released. Leliana hit the floor with a grunt of pain as her hand went back for her dagger. He stepped on her arm, so she braced herself on the floor, swung her foot up into the side of his head, and used her momentum to flip into her feet.

And as he struggled to regain his footing, she grabbed his head in both hands, and twisted it at an angle so his neck snapped.

"An unfortunate turn of events."

Leliana's head snapped up as the Templar crumpled at her feet. The mage. Or...the Tranquil mage. The far-off look in her eyes was recognizable. And...disturbing.

She went to respond, to ask if she knew what these Templars were doing, but another pair of the idiots shoved their way through the crowd of drowsy mages and dumbstruck Templars. One of them was Aedan. The other she didn't know, but he was young, almost a boy still. Barely old enough to actually be a member of the Order.

"What the hell is going on?"

"So you expect me to know?" she snapped. Speaking sent a wave of pain lancing through her chest, and try as she might, she couldn't hide the grimace it brought to her face. "I've barely been here for two days and you assume I know everything going on?"

His eyes narrowed to slits. "I _expect_ you to know why two of my Templars are lying dead on the floor!"

Hyped on adrenaline and irritated, she marched over to the unconscious mage and grabbed his arm, shoving the sleeve of his robe up. White scars covered his skin, all varying in size and length, stretching up past his elbow.

"You have blood mages in your tower," Leliana said. "It looks like you Templars aren't doing your jobs."

Aedan frowned, shouted for someone to bring the Knight-Commander, and joined her, crouching on the mage's other side. He rolled up the other sleeve, eyes widening. Instead of scars, he found tattoos, lots of them, dotting the man's forearm. Little laurels everywhere.

Before she could stop herself, she reached into her pocket and brought out the ring, placing the insignia right beside one of the greyish-blue markings. The exact same design.

"Let me see that," Aedan said, holding his hand open. When she looked at him like he was crazy, he nodded at the signet ring. Leliana hesitated, but decided she could trust him enough to let him look, and dropped the black metal circlet in his extended palm. She watched as he inspected it, frown deepening. "How did you get this?"

It was her turn to frown. "I found it on that blood mage I killed," Leliana said, snatching it back. "Why?"

"It used to be mine," Aedan replied. "Before I was a Templar..." He trailed off and coughed, looking back to his friend. "Who is it?"

"Walt and," he paused, swallowing, "Marcus."

Aedan's eyes went wide. Leliana felt her heart sink. He must've been the one with the helmet on. The one she had difficulty with. She glanced to her side, back at Aedan, but his face was blank as he stood. "Cullen, I need you to get the rest of the Seekers here, and send them up to Greagoir's office. Meet me there." The blond nodded as he went to follow his orders, and Aedan offered Leliana a hand up. "Looks like you've got yourselves a lead."

* * *

An hour later, after telling the Knight-Commander what transpired several times over, Leon saved her from his horrible interrogation skills with a flick of his wrist. The seven of them were gathered in the room, along with Aedan and Cullen, and the two heads of the Circle. A giant mess Leliana would rather have not been at the center of. But once the questioning stopped, Greagoir called to a Templar waiting outside, and she dragged their blood mage inside before retreating to stand watch. Aedan grabbed him by the collar of his robes and shoved him to his knees roughly, keeping him stuck in place with a foot.

Leon produced the signet ring Leliana had turned over to him and held it up so the man could see. "Where would your friends have gotten this?"

The mage blinked. "Same place all of Ferelden's laurels come from."

"And where's that, mage?" He shrugged and grinned a cocky, toothy grin up at the Orlesian man. Leon scowled, tossed the ring back to Leliana, and grabbed the man by the throat, dragging him up onto his feet. "I don't have time for your games. Where?"

"Highever," Aedan supplied as he released their prisoner. He returned to his place between Leliana and Cullen, and when she glanced up at him, he purposely looked away. In the back of her mind, she knew he was upset, beyond upset, but there wasn't much she could do. Marcus had been enthralled by this mage, and he was beyond rescuing. At least she had made his death quick and painless.

She lost track of what was said between Leon and the blood mage, but at the end of the conversation, the Templar who had dragged him in dragged him back out for execution. How simply he was put to death...it unnerved her. Yes, the man was a proven blood mage, but wasn't there something they could do? The First Enchanter hadn't even tried to defend the poor man! It awed her.

The sound of Aedan's voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she looked between the two speaking, brows furrowed.

"You are from Highever, are you not?" Greagoir asked.

He nodded. "Yes, ser. I know the land better than anyone."

The Knight-Commander shared a look with Leon before saying, "I want you to go to Highever with the Seekers and help them with their investigation."

Leliana's eyes widened and she looked up at the man beside her. His face was blank as he nodded. "I'll report back once I'm no longer of any use to them."

"I expected no less."

Leon's eyes traveled over them before he nodded. "Leliana, take Jasper and follow the Templar to Highever. See if you can figure out what happened to Armand. We'll join you in a few weeks."

She nodded, beckoning Aedan and the wild-haired Fereldan after her as she left the office. Their walk was silent, muted by their own individual mourning, and none of them wanted to broach the subject. Leliana was still hurting over Armand's death, had spent the better part of her night crying and missing him, but now she was responsible for Marcus' death, and it ate away at her, bringing tears to her eyes. They weren't friends, but she spent three weeks on the road with him and Aedan, and it ached to hurt him.

It disgusted her. She disgusted herself. She made herself sick. First there was Marjolaine, taking pride in being like her, and now she was killing people she knew.

How was life fair? How was what the Maker did to them fair in any way? All she knew was suffering and pain, and that wasn't right by anyone's standards. The few times she had reason to laugh...she clung to the memories of it. Those were what got her through each day, remembering the smiles she shared with Tug and Sketch, the time when Marjolaine didn't hate her, and the last few weeks with the two Templars.

One of which was now dead thanks to her.

She shook her head at herself. _No, it was the mage's fault._

Leliana kept telling herself that as she led Aedan and Jasper to the lower levels of the tower, but not for one second did she believe it. She was a murderer. The guilt was overwhelming. It made her chest ache and her eyes water, and she fought to keep it together. She was so caught up in feeling horrible that she didn't notice they had reached the staircase, and she would've walked right into the door separating the two levels had Aedan not caught her.

"Watch yourself, Seeker."

She smiled ruefully in thanks, but he only released her and went through the door.

It was going to be a problem and she knew it.


	6. Chapter 6

_"We made an exception for all of you." His voice was crisp and clear, a tone that Leliana wasn't unused to hearing. "Seekers train from a young age to join, and yet all of you are well into adulthood. I don't know who you know or who you convinced, but here you are, and you had better meet expectations. If not..." His eyes drifted to the door. "You get to walk out as a failure. Am I understood?" Ten grunts of confirmation. "Good." He paced in front of them, brows furrowed. "You'll be training with the other recruits in your age group. You keep up, or you leave. Simple as that."_

Right, _Leliana thought._ Sounds very simple.

 _Work or they throw you back to the wolves. How wonderful._

* * *

Leliana was in the middle of resaddling Onyx when a hand fell on her shoulder. She tensed, prepared herself to spring, but the hand moved just as quickly as it came, and was replaced with a coin purse.

"Here." Leon again. "Get yourself some armor that isn't so...distinguishable. I'd hate to hear about you getting killed as well."

She swallowed as she accepted the offered gold. "Thank you." It went straight into a saddlebag, and she continued preparing Onyx for their departure wordlessly.

Her friend lingered at her side for a moment, shifting uncomfortably. "Leliana, I..." He cleared his throat, swallowed nervously, shook his head. "I'm sorry about what happened last night."

"You have nothing to be sorry for," she said, pulling the girth tight across Onyx's belly. She checked to make sure it wasn't too snug before straightening and looking back at the Orlesian. "I did what I was supposed to do, and I did it well enough. Because of it, we have a lead. There's nothing to apologize for."

"I know he was one of the Templars you came here with," Leon said.

"And that's all he was. A Templar," she snapped. "I'm fine. Stop fussing. If I couldn't handle joining the Seekers, then I wouldn't be here."

Leon looked down at his feet, inhaled, nodded, and seemed to accept what she had said. "I don't know what turned you from the smiling girl I met into this, but..." He shook his head. "Good luck. We'll be praying for you."

This wasn't the first time he made her wonder just how close he wanted them to be.

"Thank you," she mumbled. He nodded again, shifted a bit, and decided it was time for him to return to the others. He walked off to return to the inn, finding the door opening for him as Jasper marched out to join Leliana. The Fereldan man gave her his typical toothy grin as he mounted his horse.

"Ready to head out?"

She pulled herself up into Onyx's saddle, tugging on the reins to get his attention, and said, "We're still waiting for the Templar."

He frowned. "Thought you knew him."

"I'm not so sure how well that will serve after killing his friend yesterday," she replied, sighing. The black horse danced skittishly, tossing his head, and she reached out to pat his neck. "He'd probably be as likely to kill me now as he would any blood mage we may find."

Jasper nodded, brows knitting together in thought. "I'll keep an eye on him."

"I...while that's appreciated, it's unnecessary. I am perfectly capable of protecting myself."

He shrugged, saying, "Suit yourself." He glanced past her and nodded to her right. "Looks like our man, eh?" She followed his gaze and her eyes went wide. Out of all the bulky plate, he actually looked...human, and was only wearing simple chainmail. No skirt to hinder his riding capabilities, and no lips of shoulder armor to block his view. His hair fell into his eyes every now and again, and he kept swatting it away, exasperated. "Stop oogling, yeah?" Jasper leaned back to his horse as Leliana smacked at him, chuckling at her.

"Shut up," she snapped.

Aedan marched up to them, pack slung over his shoulder as he mounted one of the few horses tied to the posts. It wasn't one of theirs, so Leliana could only assume it was here for purposes such as these. "Highever is only a week away on foot. We should be there in three days on horseback, but that's only if we don't run into any trouble."

"Which it'll be safe to assume we will," Leliana said. "Jasper and I need to buy new armor."

The Templar nodded. "I know a blacksmith. He should give you a discount if you tell him you're with me."

She looked around, checked her saddlebags, made sure she had her weapons, and said, "Is that it, then? Are we ready to head out?"

"Should be," Aedan said with a grunt. "If you'll follow me..." He wheeled his horse around and started the roan off at a walk, aimed for a small trail obviously intended for horses. Leliana exchanged a glance with Jasper before urging Onyx after the other man. She heard him follow on his own horse, and with one final look back at the tower, they were off.

Onyx was clearly glad to be on the move again, tossing his head in what Leliana had come to realize as his show of excitement. A smile crept over her lips and she patted the horse's neck soothingly, watching the path carefully for anything out of the ordinary. They hadn't even left the hillside leading to the Circle, and yet she couldn't help the anxiety forming in her gut. Something was going to happen on this trip to Highever and she was certain she wouldn't like it. That didn't mean she wasn't going to go regardless; she might find the person responsible for killing Armand. That alone would be worth whatever danger she was putting herself in.

He jumped up the last few feet to go, dancing past Aedan and his horse while they waited for Jasper to join them. Once he had, Aedan turned and set his mount off at a gallop, going in the complete opposite direction they had taken to get there.

Leliana had decided she missed the sound of Onyx's hooves on the dirt, and as soon as she heard it again, she relaxed far more than she could've otherwise. It was something familiar to her. After listening to it for Maker only knows how long during this venture altogether, she had grown accustomed to it.

They rode in relative silence for most of the day, speaking on the rare occasion that it might be necessary to point something out to the others. By the time any real conversation popped up, they were well away from the tower, and it was getting to be time to give the horses a break from the running. Aedan was the first to slow his mount to a walk, and Leliana waited until Onyx was abreast with the roan before stopping him. Jasper stayed behind, giving them what little privacy they could afford, and Leliana made a mental note to thank him later.

"Aedan—"

"Don't," he said.

A red brow shot up. "You don't even know what I was going to say."

"I have an idea."

Truth be told, he probably _did_ know to some extent. Most of her time today was spent mulling over what happened with Marcus and how she could even begin to apologize sufficiently enough that this venture wouldn't be awkward. Needless to say, she hadn't gotten much of an idea together, but she still wanted to tell him she was sorry, for what little that would be worth.

When she opened her mouth to try again, he held up a hand to cut her off. "Leliana, please. I don't want to hear it. I don't blame you for what happened, nor will I ever. I just want to forget about it."

She sighed. "As you wish."

He offered her a friendly smile. "I swear I don't. You only did the sensible thing. There was no saving Marcus and you put him out of his misery before it could truly begin. If anything, I'm grateful you did it. Otherwise, I might have had to, and I wouldn't have been able."

"That doesn't mean I have to be happy with myself over it."

It was his turn to raise a brow. "And why's that?"

"Because I knew him," she said flatly. "Not that he was a friend or anything, but I knew him, and I would rather not have to kill someone I know."

"Ah," he said. "I understand what you mean."

"Do you?" she asked, incredulous.

Aedan shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. "I like to think I understand why you're so loathe to. Not that I've had to kill someone I know, but I'd prefer to not. You know what I mean?"

"Like I'd prefer to not witness this?" Jasper remarked sarcastically.

Leliana shot him a glare and he chuckled, amused. Aedan only looked confused, but when the matter wasn't pressed, he dismissed it. "I think so," she agreed. Silence lapsed over the three of them and Leliana found herself searching for something to talk about. If she could keep everyone talking, she could get Aedan to warm up to Jasper, and that would only be a good thing.

As it turned out, she wouldn't have to start another conversation. "What do you think we'll find at Highever?" Jasper asked, pulling his horse alongside Onyx.

"Probably blood mages," Aedan said stiffly.

"Blood mages and some sort of puzzle to solve," Leliana added.

"Puzzle?" Jasper seemed confused. "What do you mean?"

"A roundabout way of finding out who is supplying the blood mages with passage through Highever," Leliana explained. "Someone has to be helping them move about, and someone has to be supplying them. There are Templars who should be noticing these things, but they've missed it."

"Highever has never had a large amount of Templars," Aedan said. "One or two for each Chantry, but never enough to deal with something to this scale. I wouldn't be surprised to find out all of Highever's Templars have gone missing. Maker knows we'll probably find them within the vicinity of your dead Seeker."

"Why do you say that?"

Aedan smirked smugly. "Because if there's one thing I've learned as a Templar, it's that apostates will be reluctant to an area they've deemed safe. If they managed to dispose of dead Templars in a certain area without being caught, then there's a good chance they dropped the Seeker there too, and whomever found him got lucky."

"Makes sense," Jasper said, shrugging. "I would do the same."

"Exactly."

Leliana was frowning at the road, thinking through what Aedan had said. It made perfect sense, yes, but her time hunting down that last blood mage said they never did what was to be expected. They were smart and they knew how to avoid pursuers. "I don't think it'll be quite so simple," she said.

"Oh?"

"The blood mage I took down near Gwaren, he knew how to cover his tracks, and every record on him said he was in the Circle since he was five. He wouldn't know how to move like that; there's no way he had the experience."

"Well," Jasper mused, "Leon has already said we know they have Templar assistance."

"I still find that hard to believe," Aedan commented.

"Be that as it may, Templars _do_ possess that skill," Leliana said. "Or at least, some do, to whatever degree. Even if they turn out not to be aided by Templars, they still have outside help. Someone is teaching them how to remain hidden."

Aedan frowned. "We might not be facing a cult of blood mages, then." Leliana and Jasper both looked to him, Jasper leaning down over his horse's neck to see his fellow Fereldan man. "It could be a cult that opposes the treatment mages receive under the Chantry. They could be helping mages escape by posing as Templars and encouraging the use of blood magic among those they aid."

"You don't keep track of your Templars?" Leliana asked, frown deepening.

"We've had a rather large influx of 'foreign Templars' coming to the tower as of late," Aedan said. "They all have letters of recommendation from their Commanders, but we've never actually followed up on them. We just let them inside and—" He stopped talking, eyes widening. "That blood mage we chased south? He 'escaped' when an Antivan Templar came to the Circle."

"And no one made the connection?"

Aedan shook his head. "No. Everything about his arrival was routine. But now that we've talked about it, I suspect the mages have gone missing shortly after a transfer appeared."

"How many of these transfers are still at the tower?" Jasper asked.

"None," Aedan said. "They came and immediately requested movement to Highever, Gwaren, or Denerim."

"They must still have Templar aid," Leliana interjected. "Someone is helping them figure out how to make them look like legitimate Templars. And they have to be getting the uniforms from somewhere."

"Uniforms wouldn't be hard to come by, actually. You can just steal spares from any Chantry in Thedas," Aedan said. "And collecting the armor wouldn't be much more difficult. All you'd have to do is pose as a recruit and go to whatever blacksmith was nearby. They'd make it without question."

"Damn," Jasper said.

"This just gets more and more convoluted as we go," Leliana muttered angrily.

"At least we know someone has it out for the Chantry."

Not that it's a good thing, Leliana thought. But now she knew this was going to only get harder.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** **Sorry about this, I try to avoid author's notes whenever possible, but I realized this was erring really close to something similar to Dawn of the Seeker. I just wanted to say that this story has nothing to do with the movie, nor do I ever intend to have it do so. I've never seen the movie, so if it ever does, I'll probably make some errors or ask some of you guys questions before writing it in. The chapter does refer to its events towards the end, and if any of you have seen Dawn of the Seeker, please feel free to correct any errors I may have made in the conversation so I can go back and fix them for other readers. Thank you for reading and putting up with my horrible update schedule! Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

 _Leliana decided she hated their sleeping quarters. They were drafty and the people she slept near couldn't stop complaining about their training. Leliana didn't think it was perfect, let alone fun, but she was used to training, all sorts of it. She learned to deal with it without complaint at an early age; these fools didn't know how to shut up. No wonder they were always exhausted._

* * *

The ground was hard, but she didn't mind it. It was better than not getting any sleep whatsoever. They had agreed on watch shifts, which Leliana was grateful for (she was still recovering from her lack of sleep on the way to the tower) and she was assigned to the latest round. Jasper would rouse her somewhere around two in the morning, and she'd keep watch over him and Aedan until daybreak. It had worked well enough the first night, so they stuck to it on the second, and agreed to keep this rotation as long as the three of them were on the road together.

Jasper had woken her a few hours ago for her shift, and now she was sitting away from the dim lighting of the coals. Anyone looking for her could probably see her, yes, but anyone who wasn't trained properly would most likely stumble right on past her to get to their camp. It was a good position to be in, allowing her to focus on the land in front of her rather than that behind her. Still, after years of waiting to be stabbed in the back, Leliana checked more often than she could have. And every time she did, it was clear in both directions. She supposed she should be grateful for that.

She was watching the faint grey light that signified the rising sun, waiting for its first rays to hit the earth before going to rouse her companions. They could use as much sleep as possible, Jasper in particular. The middle shift was the hardest, and even though he had volunteered for it, Leliana still felt badly that he missed four hours of sleep in the middle of the night.

As she got up, she stretched and made her way over to Aedan. Her hand fell on his shoulder and he jumped instantly, bolting upright with a curved dagger in his hand. Leliana recoiled, skirting back a few feet, and frowned at him. After his eyes came into focus, he sighed. "Sweet bloody Maker, Leliana! How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Sneak up on me!" he hissed. "I sleep lightly enough so that I may be woken up by even the slightest noise!"

She shrugged. "I just walked over here."

"Maker's breath, woman," he said, letting out an exasperated breath as he relaxed. "If you walk so quietly all the time, I'll have to learn to expect it."

"All day, everyday," Leliana said, allowing a small smirk to creep over her features. "Start getting ready to leave. I want to get to Highever as soon as possible."

"I'm going, I'm going," he grumbled. The templar was on his feet the next instant, stretching and yawning as he went about gathering his gear. He was making enough noise for a small army by the time Leliana got around to waking Jasper, who looked like he could sleep for the rest of the day and still be tired when he got up.

"Mmh," he mumbled. "W-what time is it?"

"Almost seven," Leliana reported. She had since moved to Onyx to begin saddling him, but now she pulled out a strip of dried beef and tossed it to him. "We have enough food to last us until tomorrow evening. If we're not at Highever by then..." She trailed off with a shrug and gave Onyx's girth strap a good jerk, tightening it plenty. "Well, you get the idea."

Jasper leapt to his feet. "Let's get a move on, then."

Aedan grunted. "Can you give me five minutes?"

The two Seekers simply rolled their eyes and went about their business. Meanwhile, Aedan occupied himself with fighting to get into his armor, and it was an uphill battle. Leliana eventually stepped in (without his consent) and yanked on his shoulder guard, securing it, albeit a bit roughly. He glared at her as she returned to resaddling Onyx, but she didn't notice...or at least, he didn't know she did.

A few more irritated grunts and pulls, and Aedan was ready to move. He, unlike the others, had kept his horse saddled, but whereas he had taken off his armor to sleep, they had stayed in theirs. It worked for them; in the time it had taken Aedan to get into his armor, Leliana and Jasper finished saddling their horses.

"We should reach the teyrn's land by noon," Aedan said as he mounted his horse. "There will be an outpost just off the road. If they question us..." He shrugged and trailed off. "Just let me do the talking, all right?" He gave Leliana a pointed look at that, but she only raised a brow.

"As you say." She looked back at Jasper. "Ready to go?" He nodded once, kicked his horse's flanks, and took off in the direction of the road. "How about you, templar? Think you can keep up?"

"Easily," he replied, picking up on the teasing right away. A grin crept over his features. "Are you sure _you_ can keep up, Seeker? I saw you lagging behind yesterday."

Leliana scoffed. Just as she opened her mouth to reply, she spun Onyx around and sent him after Jasper, shooting Aedan a challenging look over her shoulder. "Come on, Aedan! Keep up!" He stared after her for several moments, dumbstruck, before rolling his eyes and flicking his horse forward.

The grass they cut through rippled in waves, reminding Aedan of the sea he grew up so close to. It wasn't far; if he focused, he could smell the saltwater on the air. It brought that grin back to his face. He was home, or close to it. Highever wasn't far, nor was the Waking Sea. Maybe only a half hour ride, and he'd be on the shorelines again. He hadn't seen the clear waters since he was...what, fourteen, maybe fifteen? Either way, Lake Calenhad was nowhere near as beautiful as the waters he grew up around.

His horse slowed to a walk as he approached the road and he sat up straighter, inhaling deeply. The air was crisp and clean, carrying that familiar scent of the ocean breeze he loved so dearly. He had never been homesick, but sitting here, so close to Highever, he finally understood how people could miss their homes. After he joined the templars, he rarely thought of Highever, instead focusing on becoming the best templar he could. He had joined rather late in his years; most joined at ten, sometimes younger, and he had to work harder than the rest of the recruits he was lumped with. But he was glad to be doing something important with his life, and he would never regret joining the Order.

Leliana trotted up beside him, having noticed his lack of a presence, and Jasper was waiting for them much farther down the road. He glanced at her, catching the faint glimpse of an amused smirk, but it was concealed beneath the hood she wore with her armor, and as soon as she shifted, he couldn't see it.

"Feeling all right, templar? Upset that I beat you?"

Aedan blinked and shook his head. "I haven't been to Highever in almost a decade."

She looked back at Jasper, back to him, and then up to the sky, taking a rather large breath just as he had moments before. "Homesick?"

He shook his head again. "Just...odd. It doesn't feel real. I never thought I'd come back here. I made it clear when I left that I was glad to, and I'm not sure how my father will feel about..." He trailed off, sighing, and closed an eye when the clouds moved out of the sun's way. A hand came up to shield his other eye. "I suppose it doesn't matter, though."

"Well, it might," Leliana said, turning her horse back around. "I heard what Ser Bryant called you back in Lothering, and I'm not dumb enough to forget who rules what teyrnir."

"What did he call me?" Aedan sounded confused, and he was. He didn't pay much attention to what happened, aside from being forced to having Leliana tag along with him and Marcus. Aedan fought the urge to cringe at the memory of his friend.

"Cousland," Leliana said flatly. Her horse danced as Aedan pulled his alongside him. "You're the teyrn's son, yes? Any issues you may have with Teyrn Cousland might become problematic."

As they started off at a walk, Aedan turned to look at her, one brow arched. "You notice a lot more than you let on, don't you?"

"No one survives in Orlais otherwise," she replied. "The trick is to know when saying so is safe."

"And you think it's safe now?" he questioned.

She flicked off her hood to fix him with a stare. "Should I be led to believe otherwise? Are you going to...I don't know...stab me in the back for pointing out your surname?"

He chuckled. "Is that what they do in Orlais?"

"More or less. Usually a bard would be the one doing the backstabbing." The sun hit her eyes and she made a face similar to the one Aedan made a moment before. "Though I suppose I could fit that description if I really wanted to."

"You're a bard?"

"Once, in a life I choose to forget," Leliana said softly. "Why? Is that a problem?"

"No, just curious," Aedan replied. She nodded and he noted how subdued she became at the mention of her past. This was the first time he'd seen her smirking and somewhat carefree, and he definitely liked that side of her more than the threatening one. He figured it would be smarter to prod while she was already like this than to wait and put her in a sour mood later. "So, how does one go from _dashing_ bard to a scary Seeker?"

She laughed at the way he described bards, shaking her head in amusement. "It's a long story, and definitely an unpleasant one." After a moment, Leliana took her eyes off the road to look at him. "How does one go from nobility to templar?"

"Boredom," Aedan said. "I'm not the sort to sit around and do nothing with my life when I could be making a difference somewhere."

"Ah," she said thoughtfully. "You joined so you wouldn't become a guard...or a soldier."

"To an extent. I wanted to do something with my life," he repeated. "Becoming a soldier when there was no foreseeable wars in the future would be a waste. Guarding something was always boring. But the templars? Even with guard duty, what we do is important. We protect Thedas from mages and the dangers they present. I can think of no nobler cause."

"I can," Leliana said. "But only two."

He raised a brow. "And what would those be?"

"Protecting the mages from the templars," she said. He sighed and nodded; he should've expected that. Leliana wouldn't be a Seeker if she didn't see a point to it.

"And the other?"

"Protecting Thedas from the darkspawn."

He gave a laugh. "The darkspawn are gone. The Wardens defeated them at the Battle of Ashleigh."

"Did they?" she asked. "Would they remain if there was no threat?"

Aedan paused as he thought through her question. "No, I suppose not," he decided aloud. "But then where are the darkspawn?"

"Where the darkspawn have always been and always shall be until we have another Blight. Underground, battling the dwarves of Orzammar and the dwarves of Kal Sharok." She looked at him again and he squirmed under the intensity of her gaze. "Have you ever seen one? A darkspawn?" He shook his head and she sighed. "I should've guessed. Otherwise you'd know why the Grey Wardens still existed."

"Have you?"

"A dead one outside of Val Chevin," she said. "It was far too rotted for us to make out what it was specifically, but the black blood and the reek was proof enough. Jasper's seen live ones before; he told the rest of us what it was. Apparently it doesn't take much to recognize them."

"Jasper's seen darkspawn before? When? Where? How?"

Leliana laughed. "You think I know? Aedan, the only Seeker I know anything about faced a similar situation to the one we do now and is currently the Right Hand of the Divine."

"Oh. Well...what do you know about him?"

"Her," Leliana corrected. "And Cassandra is a frightening woman to most. She comes from Nevarra's royal family, the Pentaghasts. Seekers tend to only accept high ranking templars or young initiates, but she was accepted because of her noble status. She and another Seeker I've forgotten the name of put down another blood mage uprising, and she was, in turn, made the Right Hand."

He frowned. "If you were a bard before..."

"No, I was never a templar, and no, I wasn't given to the Chantry at birth," Leliana said. "I joined of my own free will on the good word of a Revered Mother. She was the one who convinced me to do something meaningful with what remains of my life. And when I went to—" She cut herself off. "When I went to join the Seekers, she was the one who made it possible."

"I see."

"If I could tell you where I went, I would," she said. "But where we train is a secret. You've heard of Therinfal Redoubt?" Aedan nodded. "Secluded fortresses such as Therinfal are common places we go to train and learn. I've never gone to Therinfal, nor has anyone I've trained with. We've been in Orlais and Nevarra, though, and I must say, I can see why the Right Hand was so irritated with the Pentaghasts to leave. Cumberland alone is full of nobility who scramble to remind everyone of their relation to King Markus." He was smiling at her, but she chose to ignore it. "As a matter of fact, I'm almost entirely sure you're the first nobleman I've met who _hasn't_ thought it necessary to tell everyone he's nobility."

"You're really something, you know that?"

She blinked and frowned, head snapping around to face him. "And that means?"

Aedan shook his head, making a face, and looked back to the road. Jasper was walking his horse along at a pleasant pace; the two of them could catch up should the need arise. "Nothing. You're just...different. I've never met someone quite like you."

"Ah," she said, voice full of mock suspicion, and he scrambled to correct himself.

"I-I only meant it in the nicest of ways!" he exclaimed. "It's just that..." He sighed and looked down at his hands. "I've never been able to think of a Seeker as a human being."

"Well, it's not like we try to give off that impression in the first place," Leliana quipped. "It's easier to be intimidating if everyone who knows of your existence finds you absolutely terrifying."

"Oh, now that I know, I'll have to tell all my friends," Aedan retorted, smirking.

Leliana shrugged. "It's no matter. Few templars ever get so close to a Seeker to think of them as a person."

"Hey, I didn't say person."

Leliana rolled her eyes at Aedan's laughter. "You're such a child."

"You make it too easy, my friend," he said, biting back his laughs. "Besides, what's wrong with a little laughing?"

"It makes me seem like a human being," she retorted, quite obviously biting her tongue to keep from laughing herself. "And we can't have that."

"Of course not!" Aedan said conspiratorially. "You've got to keep the impression that you're demons in disguise."

The two laughed at their jabs, and for a brief moment, Leliana was able to forget what she was doing. She could forget that she was looking for the people who murdered one of her closest friends, she could forget that she was hunting down a cult of blood mages and their supporters, and she could forget everything in between. All she had to do was look at Aedan and hear how easily his laughter came, and she could pretend the entirety of her life wasn't about keeping secrets. She could feel like she _was_ a person instead of some mindless beast driven to survival, and she could pretend moments like these would always be at her disposal.

But then she remembered that when this was all said and done with, she'd return to Orlais to continue her training, and her newfound friend would stay here to continue his career with the templars. It was a bitter thought, one that dampened her mood quickly, and she eventually stopped laughing as the merriment gave way to her usual detrimental thinking. What kind of fool was she to expect something so wonderful would last? She knew it wouldn't; the Maker was never so kind to her, and even if He might have been, her duty to the Seekers would draw her away.

She couldn't even get a moment where she could laugh with a friend without becoming so pessimistic.

"What's wrong?" The sound of Aedan's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she looked up, brows knit together.

"Nothing," she said carefully. "I'm fine."

He frowned. "That's a lie if I've ever seen one. Leliana, tell me. What's wrong? Is it your friend? The Seeker that died in Highever? Are you thinking about him?"

She sighed. "More or less."

Aedan tugged his horse to a stop and took Onyx's reins from her. The stallion flicked his ears, glancing back at his rider, but she did nothing to tell him to run, and he remained where he was. "We _will_ find the people responsible for his death. We'll find the people that killed Marcus, and find the people that have taken your other two Seekers. They won't get away with this, Leliana. I promise."

"There are three of us," she said bitterly. "Three of us against Maker only knows how many blood mages and the people driving them to such madness. What chance do we stand?"

"Your friends plan on joining us in Highever eventually, yeah? Then there will be eight of us," Aedan replied. "Seven Seekers and a templar. I know I'm not much compared to the rest of you, but I'll see this through regardless of what I told the Knight-Commander."

Leliana was about to call him an idiot for going against his superior's orders, but Jasper called out to them and wheeled his mount around to return to them. "We have a problem," he said, breathing heavily, as he came to a stop in front of them. "I've seen footprints in the dirt and barely caught myself before York walked into a tripwire."

Aedan's eyes narrowed and he reached for his sword, searching the hills around them. "Bandits."

"It looks like a lot of them," Leliana whispered.

"What?"

She pointed to the rise Aedan was now staring at. "Ten or more. We can't take anything over twelve."

"Well..." Aedan let out a shaky breath. "Looks like this'll take some careful maneuvering."

"And loads of bluffing," Jasper said. "Leliana?"

"I can handle it."

She wasn't as confident as she made herself sound.


	8. Chapter 8

_It was going to be a bad day for her. No matter what she saw, what she heard, what she thought of, it made her feel worse. Leliana was lucky enough to have the day for contemplation, but what contemplating she did, it only led to her worrying over the past. She was afraid Marjolaine would find her, afraid that one of her many other enemies would find her, afraid that she'd do something to send this all crashing down. It was driving her insane, her own depression, and she had no way to fix it. She'd barely been able to make herself get out of bed, let alone get dressed and report for their usual morning "discussion."_

 _Naturally, she hadn't paid attention. She never could when she was having a day like this._

* * *

"Oh, we are so dead."

"Optimism!" Leliana hissed back at him.

Aedan rolled his eyes and huffed as Jasper clapped his shoulder. "Have confidence," the Seeker said proudly. "Leliana knows how to bullshit her way through almost everything."

" _Almost,_ " Aedan repeated, shifting uncomfortably. He stared up at the group of bandits now making their way down the hill towards them. "I think we should just run and try to get to the outpost. It would be smarter and safer."

"The big bad templar wants to run from a fight?" she teased, though she saw the merit with his plan.

"Yes," he snapped. "They don't train us to be sword-wielding morons."

"Debatable," Leliana replied, turning her horse a bit to the side. He danced nervously beneath her, but she patted his neck and murmured a few soothing words. "Hold, Onyx." She shot a glance back at the bandits, shifted her grip on the reins, and swung her leg over the side of her saddle. "Jasper, take Onyx and hold him here. If I motion back at you, run and throw me his reins. I'll make do from there."

"Are you sure that's wise?"

"Just do it," she snarled. "I'll be fine." Without another word, she pulled her bow from its strap on her saddle and marched down the road on foot. Not for a second did she truly believe the highwaymen didn't have people hidden in the hills and brush, and as she walked, her eyes flicked to each side of the road. Leliana only spotted three archers concealed in a cluster of shrubs, but she still didn't think that was it.

She'd only made it twenty feet when the three in the bushes stood and pointed their arrows at her. Two of the men in the main group did the same, and she froze, putting her hands up. "I just want to talk."

A man in the front of the gang stood out to her; he had finer armor and carried a huge broadsword, resting lazily on his shoulder with his other hand on his hip. He was watching her with a mild bit of interest, but it was clear he was more focused on the two behind her. His eyes drifted to her right, meaning he was watching Jasper in particular. The man probably had reached for his own bow, a shortbow perfect for combat at this distance. Unlike Leliana, he preferred the sword and shield, but he still had some proficiency with a bow. Jasper wasn't nearly as good a shot as she was, but even he could hit the bandits at this distance.

"Ain't talkin' to no Orlesian bitch," he said, jerking his head in her direction. "Don't take orders from women."

She resisted the urge to shoot him now and shook her head. "Well, you can't talk to my friends there, either. They only speak Orlesian."

He regarded her heavily. Leliana didn't like the way this man was staring at her, much less the impression he was giving off. The way his eyes roamed over her...she knew _exactly_ what was going through his mind. "And what do I get out of it if I let you talk? Much simpler to just kill the lot of you now."

"I won't shove an arrow down your throat," she said nonchalantly. She shrugged a shoulder and put down her hands.

"You ain't gonna get close 'nough to do it," he snapped. "Case you can't count, there are fifteen of us and three of you." He sneered at her as he dropped his sword point-first into the ground. "What're three templars gonna do to us?"

"Let us through," she said. "We're headed to Denerim. The Revered Mother—"

"Headed to Denerim?" he mocked. "Big important Chantry shit no one gives a damn about. Kill the men, but the redheaded bitch is mine."

To her left, she heard the familiar sound of a bowstring snapping, and she hit the dirt. Her right hand went to her back for her dagger, and as soon as she was on her feet, she threw it into the nearest archer's chest.

Aedan and Jasper just stared, mouths agape.

"Run, you idiots!" she shouted. Leliana scrambled for her bow, slung it over her shoulders, and stood as still as she humanly could. One of the archer's arrows whizzed past her arm, but she didn't even twitch. She waited for the three horses to pass her before taking off after them. Jasper had let go of Onyx's reins like he was told, so he was slowing down to a trot, but Leliana didn't care. It gave her the chance to catch up to her horse, get a hand around the pommel of his saddle, and heave herself onto his back. As she kicked off the ground, her foot smacked off a stone in the road and twisted her ankle around. She had to bite her tongue to keep from yelping, but she got herself into Onyx's saddle relatively easily.

While she'd been doing that, Jasper had managed to get off two shots at the archers in the bushes, and both of them fell. Neither of them were dead, but neither of them could stay upright long enough to fire their bows, and if they didn't get healing soon enough, they'd die from the infection.

Leliana looked up after fidgeting for a moment only to see an arrow bounce right off Aedan's shield and come flying for her head. She ducked, kicking Onyx's flanks to get him to run faster, and suppressed the urge to wince as her right ankle snapped back. She'd barely been able to get it to do that much.

Several of the men blocking the road dove out of the way as the horses approached, but the leader remained standing firmly in place, sword at the ready. Aedan was positioned to run right into him at this point, but he moved his horse further to the right and leant down to the side, protecting his horse's legs and chest from the man's sword when he swung. He made a loop while the ringleader staggered back and cut the man's head clean off.

"You good?" he asked as Onyx trotted up to him.

"For the most part," she replied, glancing around at the men now getting to their feet.

"Come on," Aedan said. His eyes seemed to follow hers.

She nodded and spurred Onyx right after Jasper, who had turned to wait for them farther ahead. A lance of pain shot up her leg and it brought tears to her eyes, but still, she remained quiet about her injuries.

 _It's nothing,_ she thought.

* * *

Later that day, they had reached the outpost Aedan spoke of earlier in the morning. The soldiers offered them lunch, which Aedan and Jasper gladly accepted, but Leliana declined, choosing to remain mounted and watching the road. Her ankle had started throbbing not long after they lost the highwaymen; it progressively got worse as the day wore on, and she didn't want to risk putting any weight on it. Besides, all she had done was twist it and she didn't want Aedan or Jasper fussing over her. The pain would go away and she'd be fine.

A hand locked around her wrist and she jumped, trying to pull free. It was an elderly man, that much was obvious by the firm but wrinkled skin over the back of his hand, but she couldn't see his face; it was concealed beneath a hood, and with the sun behind him, his whole front was in shadow.

She frowned and tugged her arm back, but he held fast, bracing himself on Onyx's side. "Let go of me."

"You're hurt," he said simply. Something about his voice was familiar to Leliana, but she couldn't place it. "Let me help."

"I'm fine," she snapped. When she went to snatch her arm back, he allowed it.

"Your right foot is hanging out of the stirrup," he continued. "When you move, or when your horse does, you grimace as if in pain."

Her eyes narrowed. "It's none of your concern," Leliana snarled. "Leave me alone." He sighed and threw off his hood. The instant he did, she recognized him and her eyes went wide. It was William, one of the older mages that the Seekers kept on hand to look into any injuries they might accumulate. At first, she was surprised, but glad to see a familiar face. And after a moment passed, she became suspicious. "What are you doing here?"

"Does that truly matter?" he asked. "You're injured. I can heal you."

She hesitated and pulled further away from him. On one hand, she could never be too suspicious of people that just appear out of nowhere, friend or not. And on the other, she _did_ know him. William was never one to speak out against those that treated him like less of a man because he was a mage. He was quiet and helpful, a kind, gentle man, and Leliana trusted him more than she trusted any of her surviving friends, though she probably knew more about her fellow recruits than this man. What if he had finally snapped and followed them here to join the rebelling mages?

 _No, that's not like him._

"All right." She'd still watch him closely.

William smiled up at her. "You were always the kindest."

Leliana just scoffed. "Help—"

"William!" Both of their heads snapped up in the direction of the voice, but it was only Jasper, closely followed by Aedan, as they filed out of the barracks. "It's good to see you, old man! What are you doing in Ferelden? Shouldn't you be—" Leliana gave him a dark look and he cut himself off, looking back at their templar ally and the soldiers milling about the outpost.

"Did you know she was hurt?"

He blinked, confused, and looked between the two of them. When his eyes finally came to rest on Leliana, he asked, "Why didn't you say something?"

"Why didn't _you_ say something when Leon cut your shoulder?"

Jasper opened his mouth, started to reply, but thought better of it, and grinned at her. "Fair enough, I suppose."

"What's wrong?" Aedan asked, frowning carefully.

Leliana shrugged. "I twisted my ankle after smacking it off a stone when I tried to pull myself onto Onyx earlier." Aedan's frown deepened, but she waved a hand in dismissal. "It's nothing. It just hurts."

"After five hours?"

She looked helplessly back to the mage. "Just look at it and tell them I'm fine so we can get moving again."

He hesitated, but nodded after a moment. "I'll need you to get off your horse."

"Of course." She went to swing her right leg over his side and hop off like she usually did, but caught herself and dismounted with her left leg leading. The instant her foot hit the ground, pain lanced up her leg. She yelped and fell against Onyx, holding herself upright with a hand on his saddle. And any time she tried to put weight back on it, the pain returned with a vengeance.

"Don't stand on your foot," William said. "Can one of you help her over there?"

Aedan nodded and flicked his eyes nervously to her. "You don't mind?"

"At this point, whether or not 'I mind' doesn't matter." Her voice came out ragged, past clenched teeth, and with the annoyed hiss of someone losing their patience. Aedan simply smirked at her and wrapped his arm around her abdomen while she used his shoulder for support.

"Gettin' intimate with a templar, eh?" Jasper wiggled his brows at them, and while Aedan laughed, Leliana could only roll her eyes.

"So very funny," she replied. "William? Can we get this over with?"

He made a motion for Aedan to lead on, and so he did. The templar took Leliana out of the way of the guards going between their stations, headed for the spot the mage had indicated moments before; it was an unoccupied bench towards the side of the barracks, somewhere that she could only assume he was using to hide his magic.

"Didn't take you for the sort to hurt themselves in such a stupid way," Aedan whispered.

"It wasn't intentional," she retorted. "I'm not perfect."

"Of course not," he said with a soft laugh. "I must've mistaken you for a human being again. Damn Seekers." She rolled her eyes, but fought to keep a straight face. As they walked, though it was more akin to hobbling, Leliana scuffed her toes against the ground and froze, biting her tongue to keep from any pained grunts. She almost fell, but Aedan caught her, roughly, and she felt the wind flee her lungs. He winced for her while she coughed, saying, "Uh...sorry about that."

She shook her head. "I've suffered worse."

And he laughed, shaking his head. "Are you all right? How badly did you twist your ankle?"

"Well, if I thought it was bad, I would've said something sooner, yes?"

"I suppose."

"I thought I only twisted it," she muttered with a sigh. "But apparently not."

He smiled a bit sadly at her as he helped her sit. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

"We're all sorry," Jasper said sarcastically. He shifted his gaze to Leliana, looking to be irritated. "Your damn horse is more stubborn than I am."

She managed to grin at the beast, who was standing behind Jasper and glaring at the hand holding his reins. "What can I say? I chose a smart horse."

William crouched in front of her, glancing up cautiously. "May I?" His hands were hovering over the heel of her boot, waiting for her confirmation, and she actually had to think about it for a moment. Did she really want someone she was suspicious of putting his hands on her?

But after a moment, she gave a terse nod. "Go ahead, but make it quick."

He smiled faintly and went to work, wasting no time in yanking her boot right off. It moved her ankle and, being unprepared for the flare of pain, she cried out. The mage was unperturbed, being just as rough with removing her sock, and winced at the sight of her skin. Her own jaw dropped when she saw it; what was even wrong with her?

The joint was swollen, as was to be expected, but a bruise crept up the inside of her foot and back towards the knob of her ankle. The purplish blue tint reached up towards the middle of her calf before it finally faded out, and just seeing the condition of her leg made the hairs on her arm stand up.

"What the—"

"You must've torn something," William said, brows creased together in a frown. If Leliana was being honest, she couldn't tell aside from the movement of his eyebrows. All the expression was was another wrinkle in the series of many gracing the man's features. She supposed he hadn't aged well. "The good thing is, I can already tell your ankle isn't broken. The bad part...a torn muscle can be just as immobilizing as a broken bone." He reached forward and had barely brushed his index finger over the swelling, but Leliana still twitched and let out a hiss of pain. "Wait, I was wrong."

" _What?_ "

"It looks more like a ligament," he said absentmindedly. "Tell me; can you move your ankle at all?" She tried, but nothing happened, and she shook her head. The wizened mage gave a rueful sigh and patted her knee comfortingly. "Unfortunately, there isn't much I can do for this, Leliana. At best, I can accelerate the healing process, but it'll still be a few weeks before you're capable of doing much more than walking."

Her mouth moved, but no words came out. How was she supposed to find Armand's murderers when she couldn't even walk?

"What do you mean there's nothing you can do?" Jasper demanded. "I've seen you heal worse!"

"Young man, I know what I'm capable of healing, and what I'm not," he said carefully.

"You brought Leon back from the edge of death with a few muttered words and a poultice," he retorted. "This is a bruise and a torn whatever. How can you _not_ heal this?"

Leliana frowned, eyes catching on the movement of his hand as it drifted into the folds of his robe. "What you don't understand—" He flicked his wrist, and as Leliana tensed to strike, she realized it was only a potion. "—is that healing a wound in flesh is simpler than healing a wound you can't see." William pressed the small vial into Leliana's hand. "That should lessen the swelling and dull the pain, but as for healing the tissue itself..." He trailed off with a shrug. "That'll have to heal on its own. I can bind your leg, but it'll still hurt if you stand on it or try walking."

"There's a healer in Highever," Aedan chimed in. "She, uh...she works personally for my family last I heard. She should have a crutch you can use until your ankle heals."

Leliana sighed and dropped her face into her hands. "You've got to be joking."

"No...?"

"No, not you. I mean...I meant the Maker. We've not even begun, and already I'm being kept out of the work due to an injury."

Jasper blatantly laughed, but before Leliana could say anything, she felt a sharp jerk on her leg and bit her tongue hard enough to draw blood; William decided against giving her a warning, apparently. "For some reason, I feel like that leg won't be much of a deterrent for you, Lel."

"What did you call me?" The Fereldan Seeker grinned broadly and shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Don't strain yourself." Interrupted. This man was anything but subtle when he worked. He was loud, rough, and blatant, completely opposite from his usual self. Leliana never liked going to see him; he wasn't as gentle as he was otherwise, but he was effective with his work. "Too much exertion and you could land yourself with a lifelong injury." She nodded, but one of his brows went up. "Do you understand me? An absolute minimum of walking, no running, no fighting, nothing until this ankle feels as strong as your left."

"I understand," she said firmly.

 _But that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it._


	9. Chapter 9

_In Leliana's experience, jobs were rather simple to understand. It was either a good thing, or a bad thing, but never in between, and now the Seekers were making it extremely difficult for her to differentiate. Just the other day, a few of them had to stand in to watch the interrogation of a rather sadistic templar, and while Leliana understood why it had to be done, she didn't enjoy listening to the man's screams of pain at all. To protect the mages, the Seekers had to be brutal, but to protect Thedas, so did the templars, and she wasn't sure which was wiser._

* * *

To say she was irritated would be an understatement, but to say she was infuriated would be an exaggeration. Yes, her mood since that morning had gone south, but they still managed to reach Highever late the same evening. Unfortunately for her, she was exhausted from the effort of trying to _refrain_ from moving, and Aedan left the two Seekers at the local inn to get themselves situated while he went to the castle to inform his family of what was happening. Neither Jasper nor Leliana thought it necessary to keep any of their information from the teyrn, so they didn't tell Aedan to be subtle. And of course, while Jasper was inside trying to negotiate for three separate rooms for an undetermined amount of time, he left Leliana outside, mounted on Onyx.

"I'll be right back," he promised. "Then I'll get you upstairs so you can rest."

"Just because I'm hurt doesn't mean I need to be coddled," she snapped.

He grinned up at her. "No, certainly not. If it's all the same with you, I'll just head up to bed instead of coming back to help you down."

"You wouldn't dare."

"But I thought you said you didn't need to be coddled," he replied, frowning. He was teasing her, she knew, but her temper was short, and she wasn't in the mood. All she did was huff and roll her eyes. The Fereldan man chuckled as he went inside, shaking his head in amusement. He felt bad for her, sure, but he was smart enough to never actually insist she needed help. Leliana was independent to a fault, never asking for help during their training and always taking on the hardest task the instant it was assigned. She always managed to get it done, barely, so he never thought she'd actually need help. It was odd for him, but apparently, annoying for her.

So she sat, hands wrung through Onyx's reins, watching as the few villagers milled about the town. A few of them cast her wary looks, eyeing her armor and trying to figure out its origins, but for the most part, they ignored her. Leon was right about needing to find a different set of armor for herself and Jasper. Aedan had evidently thought of that on his own, having made the trip in simple chainmail, but the armor the two Seekers sore was quite recognizable. There was no way she could look at the passerby and tell whether or not they were a potential ally. And if they weren't, there wasn't going to be any mistaking their armor later on. General people assumed they were templars, which she was perfectly fine with, but those that knew better were dangerous.

Jasper returned a few minutes after leaving, looking somewhat irritated, but all together proud of himself. Leliana raised a brow in question, but he shrugged and nodded at the door, silently telling her to be patient. She consented with a sigh, swinging her left leg over Onyx's back and dropping to the ground with the man's help. He caught her awkwardly, attempting to hold her up and let her down far more gently than she had intended to get off. Instead, he only managed to prevent her from landing properly, and it made her ankle hurt more than it rightly should have.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I can't imagine how much that hurts."

"I'll live," she said.

His eyes lit up and she knew exactly what he was going to say. "I hope so! I hope the rest of us live, too! I rather like being alive."

She snorted. "As do I."

"For tonight, we'll stay here and get to know what's going on in Highever," he said. "Then tomorrow, we can start speaking with members of the Chantry and see if anyone has noticed anything suspicious. Does that sound like a plan?"

"Only if I don't get stuck inside all day."

"You'll get stuck inside tomorrow. I'll talk with Aedan while we're out and check if he thinks it's wise to let you out on that leg."

"I can help!" she protested, groaning when her arm bumped the doorway roughly. Jasper laughed and shifted, helping her across the threshold as gently as he could manage.

"You heard what William said. No walking on that until it's healed."

"I remember him saying a minimum of walking."

Jasper groaned in exasperation. "Oh fine, but you better hope Aedan remembers to get that crutch off the healer. Otherwise, you're really not going to be coming outside."

He helped her to a table in the corner of the inn. She dropped into the chair gratefully, panting from the exertion. "I still feel like he didn't tell us everything about this."

"Neither do I," Jasper said, sliding into a chair across from her. He looked around the room, hesitant, before leaning over the table. "I'm from this area. There..." He looked around nervously again, like he expected someone to be eavesdropping, but after they sat, none of the patrons were paying much attention to them. "When I was a boy, I broke my arm climbing in the trees. My sister, she...she told me about this woman who lived near the coast. Said she'd healed her injuries before without magic."

"You expect me to believe something like that?"

"She set my arm," he continued. "And she had it healed and functioning in only a couple of hours."

"How?"

He shook his head and shrugged. "Maker only knows. I can't remember the specifics, only that she did it. But when Aedan gets back, I can go looking for her."

She frowned. "Jasper, I don't think—"

He slammed his hand on the table loudly enough that more than a few heads turned. Leliana winced. "Don't think it's safe for us to be alone given what happened to Armand. Do you think it's any safer to leave you here alone? You can't defend yourself on that ankle. I'd rather chase after someone who could be long dead than risk getting you killed, or myself killed."

"It's still awfully convenient."

"So was William's appearance!" he exclaims. "What the hell would he be doing in Ferelden? And just when we needed him? No, I'm not buying his act. He's up to something and I don't like it. We shouldn't have let him go."

Instead of taking the bait, she simply sighed and searched for a subject change. She found one almost immediately. "Why didn't you say you were from Highever before?"

Jasper, thankfully, took the hint and returned to his usual demeanor, grinning at her. "Why haven't you admitted to having some Fereldan heritage?"

"And how do you know if I do or not?" She didn't even flinch.

"You might _sound_ Orlesian, but you look Fereldan," he said. "I'm betting you were raised in Orlais, but one or both of your parents are from Ferelden."

Leliana's eyes narrowed. "Don't avoid the question. Why didn't you mention being from Highever?"

He sighed, met her eyes for a brief moment, but his gaze flicked away as he shrugged sheepishly. "I never much cared for it here. Sure, Highever is well off, as are most of her inhabitants, but it's utterly boring here. Nothing ever happens, and while she's considered one of three prideful points in this country, I'd prefer to just be known as one of the barbarians. To anyone from Orlais, that's all I am anyway."

She started to make a smart comment, but caught herself. "I...I can see why."

"Can you?" he challenged, though it was quite obvious he was still teasing. Jasper could hardly ever manage the ability of seriousness, but when he did, he didn't fool around. He got straight to the point and got whatever needed done, done. "You seemed surprised enough a moment ago when I pointed out you're Fereldan. You cling to that accent of yours like a shield, don't you?"

"I suppose it must seem like it," she admitted with a shrug. "Though I only do so because I've been labeled an Orlesian my entire life despite my Fereldan background."

"Can't have one of our own masquerading around as one of those dog lords!" he said in a rather terrible imitation of an Orlesian accent. "Quick, convince her she's not Fereldan!"

Leliana snorted and rolled her eyes. "It's not like that."

"Sure it is. Do you have any idea how disgraceful it'd be if there were more people like you?" She shrugged, and he added, "So, where _are_ you from?"

"Val—"

"Not the lie you told the Seekers when you joined. Where are you really from?"

She hesitated. She didn't like how much this seemed to matter to him, let alone how stubborn he was about it. Not usually one for talking about her past, Leliana leaned away from him a bit more, stretching her right leg out to keep it from getting stuck in place. Even that little movement caused a ripple of pain to shoot up her leg, but she ignored it; she was so used to it after the rest of the day that this was nothing.

"Denerim," she said softly.

"Really?" One of his brows went up. "I've never been there. What's it like?"

"I don't know. I haven't been there since...since Maric the Savior reclaimed Ferelden from Orlais."

His brows furrowed. "How old _are_ you?"

"Twenty-six," she said. "Why? How old are _you_?"

Jasper's typical grin became plastered to his face again. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

Leliana groaned and sat back, fixing him with an annoyed glare. "I just told you how old I was. I expected the same courtesy from you."

"Oh, Leli," he said, laughing. "I'm not asking for your life story. I just wanted to ask a few questions. They were innocent and harmless."

She squinted at him. "Not where I come from. Someone's past and their age can get you a lot if you know what to do with that information."

He became abnormally serious for a moment, giving her a look she hadn't expected to see on the man who always thought someone's injury was amusing. "And what can be done with that information, Leli? Can you...take away someone's fundamental needs? Can you take away the two things that keep everyone going?"

"I can take that information and make well-placed calculations about—"

He shook his head. "No, stop overanalyzing it. The simple answer is: no. There's nothing you can do to someone with their age. Their past, yes, but age is nothing. Age is how much time we've wasted doing things we'll regret later. A past is exactly what it sounds like. A past. It doesn't matter here and now, and it won't matter tomorrow. What does matter is how we're possibly going to catch a ring of blood mages and their supporters when it's just us, plus a templar."

"The same way everyone that has ever been in a similar position has done it."

A brow went up. "How?"

"Lots of luck and lots of running in circles."

Jasper grinned. "Well said." She shrugged and folded her arms over her chest, holding his gaze while he studied her. It quickly became awkward, but Leliana refused to budge, and after a moment, he said, "You know, it's good for you if you smile."

"Why would I smile? I've nothing to smile about." He frowned and went to reply, but she interrupted. "You know, it's bad for you if you frown."

He snorted, but managed to stifle his chuckles. "That is why you need to smile."

Leliana sighed and went to stand. "I'm not doing this with you tonight. I'm going to bed."

"Don't you want—"

"Leave me be." The stare that accompanied the statement was so intense that he fidgeted a bit, quite a bit actually, until Leliana backed off. She used the walls to guide her as she retreated to their rooms, suppressing each and every urge she had to wince. The patrons gave her goofy looks, but Leliana ignored them, simply choosing to hobble her way upstairs and find the first unlocked room she could. It was quite the feat for her, getting up a staircase on her own, but the instant she did, she felt immensely better.

 _Maybe I'm not so helpless after all._

That belief stuck until she started down the hall. The pain spread from her ankle up to her knee and she fell, barely managing to catch herself on the small end table by the first door. A vase of flowers sat upon it, unwatered, and it shattered on the floor. Thankfully, it was too loud downstairs for that noise to be heard, and she dismissed it quickly enough that she continued without any fuss. Several doorhandles were jostled before she found an open room, and she made a note that these doors wouldn't do much to stop an intruder. Slow them, definitely, but stop them, no.

She locked the door behind her, thought that if she wasn't in so much pain that she might've pushed the dresser in front of it, and went straight to the bed. Yanking all her armor off while sitting was hard enough, but keeping it organized was far more difficult. She threw it in a pile by the foot of the mattress and amended to deal with it later, flopping over sideways in her exhaustion. It felt good to lie in a real bed...even if it smelled like wet dog. As they moved about the country, it became increasingly apparent to the former bard that the smell was everywhere. Now it seemed it was even in her bed.

The mattress was comfortable enough, but she wasn't satisfied with having to sleep on her back. She preferred sleeping on her right side, something she didn't want to do with her ankle, which was currently wrapped in two rolls of linen. It made her feel heavier.

As she closed her eyes, she debated about sitting back up and putting her sword within reach. Ultimately, Leliana chose not to, and allowed herself to drift off to sleep, her last thoughts of how suspicious she was of Jasper's "miracle worker."

 _The woman is a mage. She has to be._


	10. Chapter 10

_"What am I supposed to do now?"_

 _Leliana was sitting in the same room she had woken in several days ago. And, of course, the same Revered Mother was sitting across from her. The young bard didn't like the look of pity on her face, hated it more than she ever hated anything, but she didn't comment on it. When she had returned from tracking down Marjolaine and her friends, she'd made a snide remark that the woman had simply waived aside._

 _She wasn't sure if she liked this Revered Mother or not. On one hand, she didn't know the woman very well, and she had been taught to trust no one from a young age. The very thought of how she trusted the same woman who had taught her that made her sick. That woman was the reason Leliana had vowed not to get close to anyone ever again._

 _But on the other hand, here she was, asking Dorothea for advice. It wasn't something she was used to._

 _"What do you think you should do?"_

 _"I can't go back to being a bard," she muttered. "That's not... I don't want that anymore."_

 _The gentle smile she received in response made her sick to her stomach. "But you can't spend the same amount of time learning a new skill to replace the ones you already have."_

 _"I'm not becoming a baker if that's what you're saying."_

 _She laughed. Actually laughed. "No, that's not what I'm suggesting. I'm suggesting you take the skills you already have, infiltration and such, and put it to use elsewhere."_

 _That piqued Leliana's interest. "What did you have in mind?"_

* * *

The next morning, Leliana was up and moving by the time Aedan came to check on her. His hair was a mess, or rather, as messy as hair could get at that length. He knocked once, used his own key to unlock the door, and poked his head in. "Good morning," he said. "I was coming to get you up, but...I see that's unnecessary."

"Yes." It was all she could think to say. Nothing else really had to be said, let alone be said in the first place, but she felt responding was appropriate. "Need anything else?"

He shook his head and stepped into the room. "Just checking in. Do _you_ need any help?"

Leliana almost smiled. "Am I allowed to leave?"

"I don't see why not."

"Then no, but I'd appreciate you helping me around to find a good place to buy different armor for Jasper and myself."

Aedan hesitated a little. "I know of an armorer across the town and I'm sure he'd be glad to help, but..."

"But...? But what?"

He produced a red vial and Leliana gave it a death glare, groaning inwardly. "First, you'll want to drink this. The healer in the keep said it would help accelerate the healing process, and make most of the pain unnoticeable." Aedan passed her the healing potion, smiling apologetically, and waited patiently for her to finish swallowing it. The look of disgust on her face was amusing enough; the small grin was there before he could stop it, but he also took note of how she gingerly let her foot fall back to the floor with some force behind it. She didn't seem the least bit bothered by it, so he hoped that meant this injury wouldn't be as big a problem as that man from yesterday made it out to be.

"Satisfied?"

"Er...yes," he replied. "Now, as I was saying, you might want to wait for Jasper to return. Last night, he left the inn when I got back, saying something about needing to find some woman on the coast...?" He trailed off in such a manner, watching as the understanding dawned on Leliana's face. "Does this sound familiar to you?"

"I just forgot he said he'd be leaving for a bit," she said smoothly. She didn't want to voice her suspicion of this woman, especially not when she knew Jasper could handle himself in a fight, and definitely not when Aedan was giving her the chance to help figure this mess out. "But that doesn't matter. I can go get new armor for myself and give Jasper the coin to do the same later."

Aedan nodded. "Well, if you'll get ready, I'll meet you downstairs for breakfast and we can head over to see what he has."

"That sounds like a plan," she said. Aedan gave her a small smile before edging back out the door. It didn't take her much longer to get ready; the potion he'd given her had almost instantly wiped away all pain in her leg, giving her the usual range of motion she possessed.

After finishing up with concealing her armor expertly around the room, she grabbed her weapons and set off for the stairs. The tavern was far quieter now than it was the night before, and Leliana thought she could hear each individual conversation had she been interested enough to eavesdrop. But she wasn't, so she joined the templar at the table he was sitting at, flicking her eyes over the dining room the same way she had the previous night.

"Did you have to sit in the middle of the room?" she whispered.

He just blinked. "I can see everything from here."

"And leave your back exposed in the process."

Understanding dawned on his face and he nodded grimly, mouth set in a firm line. The look on his face said it all; he wouldn't do it again. And oddly enough, Leliana believed him. She relaxed a bit, sat back in her chair, and did another scan of the room. No one stood out to her. Just the barkeeper, and it was because he was rather...open about his staring. He maintained eye contact with her for a good three minutes when someone caught his attention.

"Follow my lead." Aedan blinked again, frowning as he went to turn to see what she was looking at, but she caught his wrist and let out a forced, but believable (barely) laugh. "Tell me that again." He still looked confused, but he was smart enough to get the hint, and he didn't shift. His eyes narrowed as she leaned forward, whispering, "Let's leave. Now. Before that man touches our food."

"I'm following your lead, aren't I?" Leliana glanced at the burly man one last time. He was still preoccupied with another man, but she swore he met her gaze as the two of them went out the front door. As soon as she closed the door, Aedan said, "Bit paranoid, yeah?"

"Paranoia is what's keeping us from getting stabbed in the back," she retorted. "Let's get to the blacksmith. I want to start asking about Armand before noon."

Another terse nod was her answer. "This way." She fell in behind him, doing her best to look at each person they passed while simultaneously attempting to remain unnoticed. It didn't work very well and she received many odd looks, a couple of glares, and several cold shoulders. The latter turned and walked away as soon as they caught her staring, and while she wanted to give chase, Leliana followed along behind Aedan as calmly as she could manage.

While she followed, she gave some serious thought to her conversation with Jasper last night. He seemed pretty determined to go visit that strange lady the other two had yet to meet, and even more determined to _get_ them there. She didn't want to suspect Jasper was a leak, not yet, so she kept that to herself, but openly wondered if he was safe.

"What time did you get back last night?"

Aedan glanced at her over his shoulder. "An hour after I went up to the castle. Why?"

She shook her head. "No reason. Just curious."

"That's a lie and we both know it."

Leliana scoffed. "And how—"

"You never do or say anything unless it has a purpose." He cringed, winced, and corrected, "Well, at least, I haven't seen you do otherwise since we met. You're, ah, rather straightforward."

"Proof you've yet to really pay attention."

"What?"

"Nothing." Even from behind, she could see the frustration written on his face, but he was wise enough to drop the conversation. She was grateful enough for that. It allowed her to get back to trying to figure out if going after Jasper was a good idea or not. And the more she thought about it, the better of an idea it seemed. He would've left only a couple of hours before midnight, and it was now well into the morning. She would've thought he'd have been back by now.

Aedan turned and ducked through a small alley, keeping his head low. Being shorter than him, Leliana didn't have to stoop beneath the cloth sunguard, but for some reason, the fact that he did made it all the funnier. She suppressed a laugh, instead opting to shake her head and roll her eyes at his back.

"Over here," he said, beckoning her after him. He slopped across the muddy road and into a small building made of stone and mortar. Leliana went after him, frowning when she realized she hadn't heard the sound of metalworking, but after getting a good lungful of the air inside, she realized why. His forge was underground and vented to the outside world.

She strayed from his side, wandering past racks of weapons and sets of armor, all stamped with Highever's personal crest. Just for the sake of it, she produced the signet ring from her belt pouch and held it up, comparing the laurels. Identical. Nodding to herself, she put it away.

"Who's there?" The voice was groggy and sounded more than cranky for being disturbed. It came from a sideroom, one Leliana suspected of concealing supplies, and as the man tried to reach them, a clatter and several streams of colorful curses reached her ears. Aedan looked back at her, smiling sheepishly as if embarrassed, and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Uh...it's me, Aedan, Ser," he said. "The teyrn's son?"

A tall fellow with broad shoulders and a perpetually furious look about him stepped from behind the curtain. He was smeared with dirt, mouth twisted up in a grimace, and the first place he looked was Leliana.

"Brought a runt with you," he grumbled.

"Excuse me?"

Aedan stepped between them with a nervous chuckle, giving Leliana a dark look. It didn't necessarily faze her as much as the fact that he looked at her like _that._ After their discussion about Marcus, she didn't believe Aedan could actually be angry, but it seemed she was wrong.

"She needs to buy armor, actually," the templar said.

The blacksmith's gaze flicked from Aedan to Leliana, black eyes narrowed as he studied her. "One of them sneaky types?" She composed herself and nodded, much to his irritation. That answer wasn't something he liked, but when he jerked his head to the far wall, it was apparent that wasn't about to make him turn away a customer. "Leather's not as good as a set of chain. Lighter, but not as strong."

"You have leathers?" she asked, glancing past him.

"Aye," he said. He pulled a scrap of cloth from his belt and started rubbing his hands with it, nodding for her to follow him. She cast a nervous glance at Aedan before doing so. "My leather work isn't as good as my metal, however."

"Is it hardened?"

The broad man looked back at Aedan, letting out a boisterous laugh. "Not a dim runt, though, is she?"

Leliana tried not to bristle from that comment. "Answer the question."

"Yes, m' leather is hardened, _madam,_ " he snapped. "Soft leather won't do much to protect you from a sword, will it?"

She clenched her fists. "Just show me where it's at."

The man froze, raised his arm, and pointed. "Behind that wall there. Chained leather is out front, leather back there. Don't steal nothing."

"Sure," she replied. She didn't know if he picked up on her sarcasm or not, but either way, he definitely didn't look like he believed her.

* * *

A half hour later, Aedan and Leliana were covering both sides of a street, asking questions and demanding answers on any strange goings-on around Highever. Leliana seemed to excel in getting the _right_ information, whereas Aedan was rather good at intimidating people into telling him anything. Not that "anything" was ever useful. What he found out, Leliana already knew, and it quickly became a competition of sorts between them; whomever got the most useful intel won. The question of what was being won didn't occur to either of them, though Aedan suspected Leliana would use her victory as bragging rights, and vice versa.

The thought of outsmarting a Seeker made him grin and double his efforts.

Another half hour passed when Leliana rejoined him. He was in the midst of questioning a couple of teenagers when she materialized from the shadows of an alleyway, arms folded across her chest and wearing a smug smirk. He stumbled over his words at the sight of her, eyes definitely not on the kids, and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Er...that'll be all, thanks," he muttered.

One thing he didn't like about teenagers—they noticed as much as the typical adult, but still possessed that childish carefree nature of youngsters. One of the girls noticed where he was looking and giggled as she went after her friends, and that made his cheeks redden.

"Get anything useful?" Leliana teased.

He shot her a glare. "Shut up."

And she laughed. That was the first time he heard her laugh since their trip to the Circle. He didn't even attempt to tell himself he didn't like hearing her laugh. It brought a stupid grin to his face despite the irritation he was experiencing only a moment before.

"Come along, templar," she said, locking her arm through his. "Let's go ask your brothers about Armand."

While he wasn't going to object to her recent mood swing, it still surprised him how quickly she could go from dead serious and professional to...this. And before he could stop himself, the words were already falling from his lips. "What's put you in such a good mood all of a sudden?"

Leliana shrugged. "Trying to not remember Armand is dead."

 _Oh. Oops._

Aedan put on a smile broader than he realized he could manage and started walking. No doubt most of Highever's remaining templars would be in or around the Chantry, which, aside from the castle itself, was the largest building in the town. This time of the day, the Chantry would be occupied by the sisters and the templars, and maybe a few of the townsfolk. It was the perfect time for them to pull a templar off to the side.

"I'm sorry," Aedan whispered.

Her brows knit together. "For what?"

"I shouldn't have asked."

"I don't mind," she replied with a heavy sigh. "If I couldn't compartmentalize, then I wouldn't be here, yes?"

He frowned, but nodded. "Still...ignoring the death of a friend... That can't be healthy."

One of her brows went up and she said, "You're one to talk. What about Marcus?"

It was his turn to sigh, but he looked away as well. "I guess you're not the only one with a reason to end these freaks, huh?"

"I suppose not."

He couldn't forget that she was the one to kill his best friend. Dammit, but she _snapped_ his neck like it was nothing! He had _never_ met a woman strong enough to do that! It unnerved him in every possible way, and looking at the expressionless woman beside him only made her all the more terrifying. Sure, she was scary right from the start, being a Seeker and all, but that made it worse. She killed his best friend without a second thought, without hesitation, and despite apologizing about it earlier, he still didn't exactly forgive her for it. He understood why Marcus had to die, might've even done the deed himself, but the shock was there, and he didn't think it would ever go away.

"Wait." She pulled him to a stop suddenly and turned to face him. "Did you really just say that?"

He blinked. "Say what?"

"That you shouldn't have asked why I was in a good mood?"

 _She said "was."_

Aedan flushed and scratched at the nape of his neck, chuckling nervously. He tried to understand her body language, but it wasn't really working. On one hand, she was standing in what seemed to be an irritated position, but her face was softer, and he thought she actually looked...pleased? Surprised?

"Was that wrong?"

"Yes, considering you couldn't possibly have known what my answer was going to be."

He rolled his eyes. "I can't even guess what your favorite color is. What makes you think I'd be able to understand the way you think in even the slightest amount?"

She linked her arm with his again and resumed walking. "White."

"Huh?"

"My favorite color. It's white."

Aedan frowned. "It's...white? I've never heard of someone's favorite color being white. That's just...that's so odd."

"Not if you think about it," Leliana replied. "Have you ever seen the shores of the Waking Sea? The Orlesian side? The sand is white. And I love snow more than most Orlesians. I like the way it glitters in the sunlight. It's like...it's like the snow is refusing to melt in its own way."

"I...think I see your point."

"There are some other reasons," she admitted. "White is a symbol of purity."

"Something I imagine you're the exact opposite of."

Leliana laughed. "I can like the idea of it, no?" He shrugged and grinned at her. He liked seeing her smile. "Besides, there are clouds too. Have you ever sat outside and just watched the sky fade from day to night? The clouds are beautiful, but not as much as the stars. I love the way they flash and twinkle, and I love the stories behind each constellation." As she went on, Aedan found his smile broadening, and while he still didn't quite understand her reasoning behind white, he could see why she found the color beautiful. Out of it came some of the best things. Not to mention she was definitely the type to like something based out of sentimentality, and the last thing she said was proof enough of that fact.

"It...it reminds me of my mother, too." Her voice sounded small and she released him to hug herself, like she was embarrassed for sharing that with him. Just as he went to say something, her eyes lit up again, but not in the excited way they had been a few moments ago. It was a determined light, one that spoke volumes of her stubbornness. "The Chantry! Come on, someone is bound to know something."

He sighed. "Right behind you."

As he followed her up the small set of stairs, he realized he hadn't been here in...well, in ten years at the very least. Though he never had much of a personal need for this place (the small chapel in the keep served well enough for all the more he visited) many of the villagers were glad for the arrival of the Chantry. A few sisters, accompanied by a pair of templars, had arrived in Highever when he was five or six, and gotten permission from his father to build this place. Not long thereafter, Aedan had begun to spend time with the templars, and his interest had become more and more prominent until it reached its peak when he was sixteen.

The red-haired Seeker threw open the massive doors with ease that surprised him and strolled right inside, unnerved by the looks she was getting. Aedan rushed to follow her, keeping a hand resting on the pommel of his sword as he slipped between the two doors.

His assumptions about the Chantry's guests were correct; one man was praying at the altar (he looked to be a farmer) but otherwise, the house of the Maker was relatively empty. Two templars stood watch on either side of the hall, and a sister was sitting in a pew, staring up at the statue of Andraste. She had a far off look in her eye that Aedan didn't like, but he said nothing as they passed her.

For a moment, he wondered where Leliana was headed, but then he remembered there was a good chance she had spent more time in a Chantry than even he had, and that she knew the layout just as well as him. She was headed for the back, probably looking for the Revered Mother or the templar in charge. He supposed that was a good a plan as any he could think of and hurried to catch up to her.

She walked into a small room, Aedan right on her heels, and strode over to a woman seated at a desk. A templar was doing his best to stand off to the side and be inconspicuous about it, but to anyone who knew how a Chantry operated, it was pretty obvious he was there.

"Revered Mother."

The woman turned slightly, barely acknowledging their presence, and resumed writing whatever it was Revered Mothers wrote. Aedan didn't think that was a very respectful response, but then again, they hadn't been as respectful as they could've been either. He thought back to bow loudly they entered the building, and how loud he was when he walked. She had probably heard them coming the instant they reached the stairs.

And still, Leliana remained to walk as silently as a shadow, even with the new armor. Aedan tried not to stare at her curves.

"What is it?"

Oh, he definitely didn't like this woman already.

"We require—"

She stood, shoving her chair back with enough force to make its legs screech on the floor. Aedan winced and took a step back, frowning as the mother turned on them. "You _require_ something of me? Young lady, you realize this is the Chantry, yes? The Chantry is required to do nothing for vagrants like yourself."

He could see her bristle, but before she could lose her temper, Aedan pulled Leliana aside and took her place. "I apologize if my friend offended you, Mother...?" He trailed off purposely, fishing for a name.

"Elizabeth."

"Mother Elizabeth," Aedan finalized. "We've come from Kinloch Hold to look into the death of a Seeker and—" Leliana cut him off with a cold look.

"And...?"

"And nothing," Aedan said hastily. "We were just wondering if you still happened to have any of his belongings, or if you knew who had recovered the man's body."

"The only thing that was returned to us was already sent to the tower," she said curtly. "And as for who found him...you'd do better asking around the town. The finding was reported by a farmer to one of the templars, and he brought it to my attention."

"Could you tell us what the templar's name was?"

She waved at the man standing on the other side of the room. "Ser Alistair, come here please."

The templar removed his helmet to join them, keeping it tucked firmly under his arm. "Revered Mother." As Aedan studied the blond man, he realized he couldn't be much older than Cullen, but had a certain air about him that commanded respect and attention. He must've done well during his training.

"Tell these two what you reported to me about the missing Seeker."

"Oh, right," he said. He locked eyes with Aedan, standing up a little straighter, and briefly, Aedan wondered if Alistair could tell he was a templar too. "About a month ago, I was patrolling the edges of the village. We've had a few strange reports from some of the townsfolk of creatures on the outskirts. I was passing by the road when a farmer ran up to me and told me of the body he found. I gathered a few other templars and followed the man out to the location, at which point he promptly disappeared."

"Do you think you could take us to where the body was found?"

Alistair nodded. "I remember the way. Revered Mother?"

"You've leave. Be back before sunset."

"Yes ma'am," he said. "Follow me."

As they filed out of the Chantry, Aedan shot Leliana an apologetic smile, and she returned the gesture. If he looked closely, he thought he could see tears in her eyes. They were finally getting somewhere.


	11. Chapter 11

_"Do you think they care if we die?"_

 _It was Armand, speaking for the first time in several days. He wasn't a very talkative man; it was part of the reason Leliana liked him more than most of the others in the barracks. She wasn't sure what the other part was, but she was positive it had nothing to do with attraction. After her experience with Marjolaine, Leliana was more guarded than she used to be, and aside from Dorothea, no one knew her background. The Seekers only knew she was a bard, but had no truth on the matter aside from the word of the Revered Mother._

 _"Well," she said, "I'm going to assume they don't."_

 _He raised a brow. "Why's that?"_

 _"Because they're sending the ten of us to look into something I wouldn't send an army of templars at," she replied. "The ten of us aren't anything but ordinary people at this point."_

 _"Our training has to mean something, though."_

 _"We know our way around weapons," Leliana snapped. "The only thing we're good for is—"_

 _A fist banged on the door of the barracks once, but the two of them understood what it meant by now. Outside, immediately. And they went, immediately, without question._

* * *

Alistair walked ahead, leading them out of the town. He was taking them towards the coastline. Leliana was glad it wasn't a long walk, little more than a half hour, and was surprised that they couldn't hear the waves smashing on the cliffs sooner. To their right, she could see the cliffs shrinking to small rises and beaches, and despite their reason for being here, she understood why someone would want to put the heart of their teyrnir where it was.

Their guide stopped a few hundred feet from the height, gesturing to a patch of overgrown grass. It ran the length and up towards the drop off for as far as the eye could see. As she and Aedan went to join him, she heard him say, "I've missed Highever."

"Then why did you leave?"

"I told you why," he replied, but he didn't sound like he was really paying any attention. He looked to be lost in his past, staring up at the sky and marching right past Alistair to look over the Waking Sea. She didn't call him back; in no world could she possibly imagine what it was like to come home after ten years. All of the places she considered home no longer meant anything to her. Home was the barracks.

As she joined the younger templar, he crossed his arms and nodded at the grass she had just waded through. "We found the Seeker here. It looked like he was ran through with a blade of some sort."

"Of some sort?" Leliana arched a brow. "You mean there are multiple types of blades?"

Alistair flushed a bit, but grinned at the humor. "You know...greatsword. Broadsword. Longsword." He spread his arms. "It was wide. Maybe a greatsword."

"No mage is going to carry a greatsword," Leliana replied.

Alistair shrugged helplessly, at a loss for words, and went silent, watching the redhead as she went about snooping over the ground. Whatever tracks or clues might've been left behind had been swept away by rain and wind, leaving nothing but a memory, and the instant Leliana realized this, she let out a frustrated groan.

"Find anything?" Aedan asked as he rejoined them.

She shook her head. "No, though Alistair suspects Armand was run through with a greatsword."

Aedan frowned. "A mage can't lift one of those."

"That's exactly what I said."

"Hmm." The dark-haired man looked up at the sky, closing his eyes as a heavy breeze washed over them. Leliana thought she saw him smile, but she was quickly too preoccupied inhaling a lungful of salty air. It felt oddly good and she remembered why she loved being near open bodies of water so much. The smell of the water was perhaps her favorite part, saltwater or fresh. She just liked the smell of water.

"What if it was one of the foreign templars?"

She returned her attention to him and fought the urge to grin. "Why didn't I think of that?"

Aedan shrugged. "It would make sense. Armand wouldn't be expecting templars to chase after him, would he? The perfect ruse; offer help and when he isn't looking, stab him in the back."

"Foreign templars?" Alistair asked.

Leliana nodded. "We think there are men masquerading around as templars. Know of any?"

He paused, brow creased in thought. Aedan had said on the way here that most transferred to Highever or Denerim. They could still be in the teyrnir.

"Yes," Alistair said. His eyes lit up as the word left his mouth. "There's an Antivan man in the Chantry, said the Knight-Commander at the Circle sent him. We passed him on the way out here."

Aedan and Leliana exchanged glances. By the look on his face, Aedan must've been thinking the exact same thing she was. "We need to get back to Highever. With any luck, he wouldn't have been tipped off that you're a Seeker, but otherwise..."

"Otherwise he's long gone," Leliana finished.

Alistair paled. "You're Seekers?"

"No, she is. I'm not." Aedan made a hand motion, and Alistair nodded. "I'm a templar."

Before Alistair could say something that would give them the chance to "bond over past experiences," Leliana interjected with, "We should get moving. We need answers, and I'm willing to bet that Antivan has some."

* * *

The way Leliana moved terrified Aedan. After getting her to relax so easily around him, it was even easier for him to forget that she actually _was_ a Seeker. She had the same mannerisms, same attitude, same everything that he had heard about them. And the instant Alistair pointed out the Antivan "templar" they had returned for, she had gone from herself to that monster all templars fear.

The Antivan tried to resist, obviously, but it did him little good. He drew his sword; Leliana slapped it aside. He tried to punch her; she twisted his wrist. Then he tried to run; she grabbed his shoulder and propelled him face-first into a bookshelf. Aedan winced for the man and made a mental note to never get on _any_ Seeker's bad side, let alone Leliana's. He and Jasper had talked a bit before he had left last night, and the impression Aedan got of Leliana was...slightly disturbing. She was the only one that had gone into training with any sort of _real_ combat experience, and according to Jasper, she had improved in the last few years. Drastically. "She's the last one of us you want to piss off," he had said. "Her, then Leon. I swear the two of them could take on twenty men without batting an eyelash." Aedan had laughed. He thought Jasper was joking.

Then he saw the fist fight that ensued. Needless to say, Leliana won. Easily. Quickly. To be exact, it took her one swift punch to the soft spot in his armor, a kick to his knee, and when he was doubled over, an elbow to the throat. Aedan hadn't blinked once during the exchange, though whether that was from awe or just how quickly it had gone, he wasn't sure.

Alistair whistled in amazement. "They're not joking about Seekers, are they?"

Aedan wasn't sure who "they" were, but he had an inkling. During _his_ training, the knowledge of Seekers just...appeared. One day he had no idea they existed, and the next, he knew as much as any templar would ever have the "privilege" of knowing. Just by witnessing this, he felt he knew more about the Seekers of Truth than anyone.

"I haven't thought that since I met her," Aedan whispered.

"She's terrifyingly deadly."

"All Seekers are...supposedly," he said. "They're meant to whip us into shape, so they have to be."

"I'm glad they've never been to Ferelden before."

Aedan smirked faintly. "That we know of."

And Alistair shuddered, much to Aedan's amusement. "He still alive?" The younger man seemed eager to change the subject, though he probably could've thought of a less...morbid discussion. By now, the few guests had gathered around behind the templars to watch the proceedings, including the other templar that had been standing guard with the Antivan imposter.

"What's going on?" he demanded. He went to pass Aedan, but he stuck an arm out and fixed him with a hard stare.

"Chantry business." It wasn't until Aedan realized that this was a templar he was speaking to, _inside_ of a Chantry, that he rolled his eyes. "Later. No one needs to know much about this."

The man raised a challenging brow. "On whose authority?"

Aedan stood up a little straighter and went to snap at him, but just as he opened his mouth, Leliana intervened. "Mine." She handed the templar an amulet, one with the eye of truth pressed into its coil, and turned on her heel and marched back to the Antivan. The templar glared at the necklace for a few moments before walking towards her, back stiff. Aedan assumed they spoke, but the crowd behind him and Alistair had begun chattering away about the events.

When the templar rejoined them, he nodded to Alistair. "Clear the Chantry." The blond nodded grimly in response, and soon enough, the two of them started ushering everyone outside and away from the scene. Aedan watched for a moment, but decided it better to join the redheaded Orlesian kneeling over her victim.

"Anything useful?"

Leliana didn't answer. From what he could see, she seemed to be searching the man's robes and various belt pouches. She obviously found a few things important, setting them aside for later, and looked up at him over her shoulder. "They have a list."

He frowned. "A list? What do you mean?"

"They know the names of every Seeker in Ferelden," she replied slowly. As soon as the words left her mouth, she went back to searching the unconscious templar. "They know what we look like, too. He knew who I was the first time we walked inside."

"Then why didn't he leave?"

She shrugged a shoulder. "Perhaps it's because his orders were to kill any Seekers that came looking for clues about Armand."

"One man isn't very useful against you, however," he observed.

"I know how to defend myself." Aedan thought he heard a smile on her voice, but he wasn't sure. Leliana didn't smile often. He could do with seeing her smile more, he thought.

"Clearly," he replied sarcastically. _Have to mention that conversation with Jasper sooner or later._ "So what should we do next?"

"Find somewhere safer to sleep."

"Done." Aedan waved a hand, though she couldn't see. "My father offered the guest rooms, but I assumed you'd prefer to stay at the tavern."

"Things change."

"Clearly," he repeated.

Leliana sighed and got to her feet. "I think that's all I'm getting off this man."

"What did you find?"

"I'll tell you later. For now, let's go back to the tavern and wait for Jasper." He nodded his agreement; it sounded like a decent enough plan, if they were careful about it. And if he knew anything about her, he knew she was cautious.

While she went for the door, Alistair trooped back inside with his comrade. Aedan followed Leliana, but stopped abruptly and caught Alistair's arm, whispering, "Have the guards take this man to the dungeons. I imagine our friend is going to want to...talk to him." Alistair blinked, seemingly confused, but after a moment, realization dawned in his eyes and he nodded. With a friendly shoulder-clap, Aedan went on his way, hurrying to catch up to the Seeker.

 _I feel like a lost puppy. Why am I so eager to follow her around?_ Aedan started to answer his own question, but interrupted himself in favor of jogging to Leliana's side. She was the Seeker; even if he wanted to be in charge, there was nothing qualifying him to give her orders. By every respect, she was his superior, and he did what she said. He was good at that, following orders. He preferred it to giving them; he was quite satisfied with his position as a knight and not Knight-Captain. Not giving too many orders, not taking too many. The perfect place for him in the chain of command.

"Are you all right?"

Leliana blinked at him, face expressionless, but he saw a hint of amusement buried in there. Right past the fury that was threatening to boil past her self-control. "For the most part, yes. It was hard refraining from killing that Antivan."

"I understand."

"For once, I won't argue with you," she replied. "You probably do."

"I do," Aedan said firmly.

And Leliana nodded. He was consciously aware of the slowing of her pace, but so focused on figuring out why that he didn't realize he was matching it. "I've been thinking."

"About what?"

"Our conversation on the way to the Chantry this morning," she said. "I told you what my favorite color is, but you never told me yours."

Aedan raised a brow. "After all that's gone on today, _that's_ what you're thinking about?"

She grinned at him and he couldn't help returning the gesture. "I'm fairly good at compartmentalizing. I was trained to..." She trailed off and gave a weak shrug. "Well, I was trained to keep my mind off the bad and focus on the good. It leads to a happier existence."

He sighed. "Is this really bothering you?"

"To an extent, yes. If I tell someone something about myself, I like to hear something about them in return."

"In all fairness, that's the only thing you've told me about yourself," Aedan retorted.

"The color." She didn't care that she was being a bit hypocritical. That, or she just didn't feel like continuing that conversation. Aedan had already gathered she didn't much like speaking of her life before joining the Seekers, let alone what it was like _afterwards._

The look she was giving him made him feel pressured. He shrugged. "Blue or orange. I'm not really sure."

"Is there a reason?"

"No," he said simply. "I just like blue, all shades of it. Dark, light, the middle. As long as it's blue, I'm happy."

The corner of her mouth turned up slightly. "And orange?"

Aedan chuckled nervously and looked away, unable to meet her eyes. He looked anywhere but her, gaze flitting over the passerby and the homes, the stray dogs and cats running through the streets with children chasing them. Highever wasn't the best place to live, but he loved it nonetheless, and it was the only place he considered home. The Circle was just a place to exist. Highever was where he wanted to live.

"Is that a hard one?"

He laughed, but she actually looked completely oblivious to the joke she had just inadvertently made. "It's yours, so I'd hope not."

She blinked...blinked again...and then sighed. "You are _such_ a child."

"I'm a man, dear lady," he said. "Dirty jokes are all I think of." He was joking, of course, but Leliana ignored it. She wanted her answer.

"Now you're avoiding the question."

"I don't rightly know," Aedan admitted. "I mean...I started liking orange when my father took Fergus and I to Redcliffe when we were boys. We took one of the paths through the Bannorn, one of those ones that aren't quite large enough to be put on a general map of the country. It was autumn, and I just...I remember looking at the trees overhead and being absolutely _fascinated_ by the colors."

"Orange in particular?" she asked.

"Orange in particular," he confirmed.

She smiled again. "You're sentimental." Aedan could only shrug, embarrassed, and held the door for her. Leliana strode inside, making a brisk pace as she sought out a place to sit. He frowned, confused, until he remembered she still had an injury, and all this activity was probably stressing it, even with the healing potion.

Leliana chose the table in the far left corner of the bar. It gave the best view while keeping her safe from anyone sneaking up on her. He wasn't surprised, and as he joined her, he realized he was smiling faintly. She looked a tad confused to say the least, and bewildered at worst. Aedan didn't care. It amused him how she made such a predictable move.

And that was what made him realize that no matter what she did, no matter who she was, no matter how scary she could be, she was still human. She was human underneath all those layers of mean and icy that she was trained to be, and he _knew._

He knew that despite her flaws, despite the Seeker-status, he liked her. Liked her enough to want to hold her, liked her enough to want to peel away all those layers until he knew her for who she really was.

Aedan Cousland was a stubborn man. He'd find a way.


	12. Chapter 12

_Leliana was, as usual, the only one permitted to skip training, and was sitting in the same courtyard the lot of them sat in everyday. It was set as far from the gates and sparring ring as possible, giving as much silence as was manageable. Quite a few of her friends (if she even considered them that) hated being forced to sit in the quiet for hours on end, but she enjoyed it. The only other she found liking it as much as she did was Jasper, surprisingly enough. He was the loudest of them, the most energetic, and he could sit beside her without saying a word for several hours._

 _It was the one thing he was good at, but one of many things Leliana found easy. From what she gathered, most recruits that joined the way they did were like him. Most that had spent their lives training for this were like her. Their trainers preferred the ones raised for this, as they had some crumb of experience, but Leliana came, subdued and withdrawn, and used their training as an outlet for the frustration and hurt that had built up since Denerim. And her, she was the favored one because she didn't_ need _to be trained constantly. She joined the others for lessons that were required, but she was prepared for each of them._

 _Leliana spent most of her time meditating as she was now. The Seeker tasked with watching them was rather pleased, had approached her on numerous occasions to_ advance _her to harder tasks and responsibilities, but she always declined. She didn't want to be the person everyone singled out for being an overachiever, though she was well aware she had already gained that status. And while she despised it, she knew the only one close to taking that from her was Leon. That man was the only one that even remotely rivalled the skills she walked in with._

 _She had a love-hate relationship with him. He liked her well enough (when it wasn't obvious she was better than him) and she liked him. He was a nice friend, one of the few she actually thought of like that, but once they got anywhere near each other outside of the barracks or this courtyard, his jealousy took over, and he_ had _to best her at everything._

 _He never did._

 _She was sitting here now, however, because of a conversation with Liam that morning. He wanted to speak to her privately, and this was the place they had agreed to meet. Liam was a Nevarran man, the one who was overseeing their training, and she assumed he was going to ask her if she wanted the advancement_ again.

 _And Leliana planned on accepting if he did._

* * *

"Jasper has been gone too long."

Aedan's head swiveled around to face her, both dark brows raised. "I said that an hour ago. He said he'd be back by morning, and it's noon."

The two of them had been in the tavern for three, maybe four hours, and what little conversation passed was about the man in question. Aedan had started out by prying for more personal information, questions Leliana so expertly dodged, and eventually gave up when it became apparent she would rather sit and keep her thoughts to herself. She wasn't one for voicing her concerns, not after what happened the last time she did.

"I want to look for him," Leliana said. "I'm starting to get worried."

The black-haired man nodded his agreement. "Are you sure your leg can handle it? We were just traipsing around for a good two hours."

"That was this morning," she snapped defensively. "I'm perfectly fine now."

"With a torn muscle...or whatever it was."

"Ligament."

"Right. That thing," he said. "But really, Leliana. Are you up for it?"

She arched a brow in his direction. "I wouldn't have said as much if I wasn't." He gave her a stern look, one she was somewhat surprised to see, and waited for her response. As well as Leliana concealed it earlier, her ankle had started throbbing on the way back from the Chantry. Aedan had apparently noticed, and she, apparently, hadn't hidden her pain as well as she thought she had. She let out a defeated sigh, saying, "I should probably take another potion before we leave."

Aedan's face lit up, clearly proud of himself for winning that argument. "I have a few stashed upstairs from the healer. I'll go grab them and we can go."

She nodded. "Thank you, Aedan."

He got up and left, leaving her to watch out for herself and keep an eye out for anyone suspicious. Not that she wasn't capable of doing it, but that she'd rather have someone with her.

 _That someone being him._

Leliana allowed herself that one thought simply because he wasn't with her, but then she shoved it and the emotions it brought away. They were going on a month now, and while that month was full of exhaustion and anger and pain, Aedan had been the one _good_ thing that came out of it. He'd made her smile more than anyone had in the last four years in a single month.

And how did she repay it? Snide remarks and constant teasing. He didn't seem to mind; Aedan actually responded to humor better than he responded to serious discussions. They'd had them, yes, and given the current situation they were in, it wasn't surprising. The humor was probably a refreshing change for him. If she was being completely honest (which she rarely was) it was good for her, too. She wouldn't admit it, but it felt good to finally be able to trust someone enough to let her guard down even a little.

She paused in the middle of her thoughts. Did she really trust him? He was the same man who had threatened her at their first meeting, who had goaded and snarled at her for a week until finally warming up to her, and the same man who lost his best friend because she killed him. Out of _everyone_ she had met on this trip, Leliana's rational mind told her he was the last person in Thedas she should be trusting.

Then there was the irrational part of her. That part trusted Aedan more than she was willing to admit. Since Marjolaine betrayed her, there was only one person she had trusted—Dorothea. The Revered Mother had gotten her here, given her some purpose that wasn't completely and utterly twisted like that of a bard, and she was grateful.

A few smiles, and she was giving Aedan the same level of trust she gave Dorothea.

 _Stupid,_ she thought. _He's more likely to stab me in the back than Jasper is. What's wrong with me?_

Leliana knew _exactly_ what her problem was. It was another thing she refused to admit.

The subject of her thoughts reappeared downstairs, a small bag slung over his shoulders and a flask in the other. Even at that distance, Leliana could see the vile liquid sloshing around inside of it. She grimaced in disgust; she'd had her first healing potion as a small girl at Lady Cecilie's request. It was a migraine, something she was grateful for having outgrown, and only a small swallow was needed to start soothing her pounding head, but it was the most disgusting thing she had ever tasted. Leliana could handle medicines for colds in the winter, but healing potions? No, those were horrible. They tasted like dirt mixed with dog shit.

And that is exactly what she said when he gave her the vial. The comment made him chuckle as she handed the empty thing back. "How do you know what dog shit tastes like?"

"Ever smell something so strong you can taste it?"

His eyes went wide. "I imagine that was quite the experience."

"It's the experience of walking into Ferelden for the first time in years."

The templar laughed again. "Guess I'm just used to it."

A small smile crossed her features and she stood. "You've no idea what I would've given to be used to that smell when we first got here." She stretched, glad to be on her feet, and gestured for him to lead the way. As they went, Leliana shot a glance back at their table, and realized how much she hated having to sit on the edge of her seat.

 _I could've just taken the quiver off..._

He held the door for her, overdoing the gentlemanly bow he added. She rolled her eyes, suppressing a snort of amusement, and planted her hands on her hips. Aedan was grinning, not that she could see; Leliana was too busy glaring at the sky and the rain starting to fall on them.

She went to say something, but Aedan cut her off. "Want to take the horses?"

"We don't even know where he went," she replied. The response was pointless as she was already strolling over to their mounts. Onyx tossed his head in greeting and she smiled at him, giving his neck a quick pat before pulling herself into the saddle, left foot leading.

"We know he was headed towards the coast," Aedan said.

"Yes," she agreed, squinting up at the grey clouds overhead. The way they swirled together and moved with such speed reminded her of an angry stallion. Beautiful, full of grace, but deadly.

"If we hurry, we can beat the rain and find his tracks in the sand. Follow his path and hopefully, find him."

"That's what I was thinking."

He grinned at her, flashing some teeth with the broadness of it. "I just know you well enough to see it coming."

And for some reason, she laughed. That only made his grin widen. "You should do that more often. It's a..." Was he blushing? The thought of it made her only laugh harder, but the laughter only made him blush _more,_ and it was circular until he finally recovered. Aedan sat up a little straighter, inhaled deeply, and said, "You have a pretty laugh."

That stopped her cold. Not in a bad way, but she was actually so surprised that she didn't know how to respond. She had been laughing because it sounded so similar to the conversation she had with Jasper, and that was exactly where she had expected it to go, but instead, Aedan told her he liked her laugh.

When that _finally_ registered with her mind, Leliana offered a small smile. It was genuine, but nervous, and she thought he could tell by the way he returned a similar expression. "Thank you for saying so."

"Always so formal," he teased.

Leliana was thankful that he reverted to humor again. She could handle that. But flirting? Compliments? No, she was afraid to go anywhere near such things. "I have to be. One of us has to be civilized, no?"

He scoffed, putting a hand over his heart, and faked an expression of pain. "You wound my pride, dear lady."

"And _I'm_ the formal one."

"I figured if you were going to play it that way, then I should return the favor."

She sighed in defeat, giving a half-hearted eye roll, and gestured for him to lead on. He knew the terrain much better than she did after all, and if she had her way, she'd never be here long enough to actually learn it. Not that she didn't like Ferelden, but that she didn't want to be here so long that it became apparent that they couldn't handle the mages.

Aedan, who had mounted his horse while he spoke, went off at a gallop towards the Waking Sea. Leliana spurred Onyx after him, wincing at the strain on her ankle. It wasn't that it was over strenuous; it was the flicking motion. When she first injured herself, she could only urge the horse on with her left foot, but the healing potions must've been slowly reconnecting the tears. She was glad to find her ankle responding to the orders she gave it.

On horseback, the journey to the coast was nearly halved. A good thing too, as the rain seemed heavier the further they strayed from Highever. By the time Aedan had led her past the cliffs and to the beach, the rain was coming down at such a steady pace that Leliana deemed it necessary to pull up the hood of her cloak. Plenty of the excess water had run from her hair to her face, making her wipe away what masqueraded as tears and blow droplets off her lips.

She rode up beside him, watching the waves further out to sea swirl and chop at dangerous speeds. "That doesn't look good."

Aedan shook his head. "It's not a seastorm," he said confidently. "I've never seen one while I was here, and records date back to Mather Cousland. Haven't had one in hundreds of years."

"Things change," Leliana said. She stole a glance at him, but he seemed right at home in the rain, not bothering to attempt at wiping off his face. She looked away, taking a deep breath, and decided to focus on their current objective. "Do you have any idea of where Jasper might've gone?"

"This is the easiest way to reach the shore. He would've followed the same path we did and presumably headed west, back towards the cliffs."

"What makes you say that?"

He pointed to her right. "That way is Amaranthine. Between here and there, the land is level and consistently beaches. It only raises above sea level when you get a few hundred yards from the arling's port city, and even then, it's only a couple of feet."

"So if you were a healer trying to remain hidden from the public, you'd live in the cliffs."

Aedan nodded, twisting his hands through his horse's reins. "There are plenty of caves and fords to reach them. Even in this weather, they should be safe to cross. If I had a map of the area, I could point out the caves this woman is most likely to be hiding in."

"I've a map of Ferelden," Leliana said.

"No, I need a map of Highever, the shoreline specifically. It has the caves marked for ship captains in case they need to dock and take shelter from storms such as this."

She chewed on her lip, glancing nervously at the choppy waves, and said, "Let's just get going then, yes?"

"Sounds like a plan."

"Lead on."

Aedan kicked his horse's flanks and went down the hill at a brisk walk, branching out into a gallop once he reached the sand. Leliana followed suit, keeping Onyx and herself at a distance from the water. It was coming in quickly, but then drawing back out almost as fast. It looked like it was...lurching. She had never heard of water doing that before. Either way, it still made headway, and after a few minutes, Aedan had to direct his mount further inland because the water was starting to reach him.

There was a clap of thunder, a flash of lightning overhead, and then the rain began coming down in buckets. It took less than three seconds for Leliana's hood to become obsolete, and as soon as it did, she flicked it off. Needless to say, she was soaked in a matter of minutes, both from the sea spray and the rain itself. Not that she minded, much, but the wind was whipping her cloak around, and chilling her to the bone.

Up ahead, Aedan and his horse ran right across a flooded area of the beach, kicking up little pebbles. He stopped to wait for her at that point, holding a hand over his face so he could keep her in sight. If it was hard for Leliana to see, she imagined it would be just as difficult for him.

Onyx made the crossing just as easily as the other horse, trotting to a stop next to his rider's counterpart. She patted his neck again, running a hand through her own hair, and raised a brow at Aedan. "What is it?"

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Weren't you the one telling me that it would be safe?"

He shrugged a shoulder. "I didn't think it would get this bad so quickly!"

"We can't just leave Jasper though!"

He glanced behind his back, farther down the coast, and sighed. "There should be one of the caves just up ahead. We can wait out the worst of the storm there, and continue when the rain lets up."

"Then go!"

He made a face, spun his horse around, and took off at a sprint. Leliana wasted no time in urging Onyx after him, squinting to (hopefully) see better. It didn't work as well as it did during a sunny day, sadly, and she barely kept Aedan in sight. He was less than three yards away, and she was having a hard time keeping track of him.

Barely, just barely, she saw Aedan's horse rear up in fright. He managed to hold on as the animal dropped back to the ground, some noise akin to an explosion accompanying it. She pulled back on Onyx's reins roughly enough that he almost skidded to a halt, and as soon as she was alongside the templar, she saw what had his horse panicking. There was a wave receding back into the sea, probably having just smashed against the cliff, and most likely the source for the noise. It definitely wasn't thunder, she knew that, but if that was a simple _wave..._

"Where's this cave at?!" she demanded.

"A couple hundred yards, I'm not sure! Just keep moving!"

 _This is the dumbest thing I've ever done._

The two of them took off again, flinching at each clap of thunder, and focused only on getting their horses to stay going the direction they wanted them to. It was a difficult task, staying near each other and keeping from getting bucked off in fright, but they managed it, and after Maker only knows how long, Leliana saw their destination.

And light coming from inside.


	13. Chapter 13

_The glare from the sun blinded her eyes. No, not the sun. Torches. Hundreds of them in a long, otherwise dark hallway. Was she underground? She had to be. Thinking back on the last few hours, she couldn't remember much. Faint flashes of bright lights, blues and whites. But she could remember opening her eyes, seeing the face of Liam with a large grin standing in front of her. She felt...complete, whole._

 _Then the memories came. Thoughts of being empty and lifeless, barely functioning enough to survive. Being so alone that there weren't even thoughts, just actions._

 _But seeing light again, taking it as it was and valuing it, seeing the purpose to life, it didn't feel like an end. It felt like a beginning._

* * *

Neither of them wanted to dismount. There was no safe place to leave their horses, let alone any place where they weren't likely to bolt. Leliana had plenty of confidence in Onyx, but not even she expected the poor horse to remain where he was when there was a tidal wave coming for him.

"Well?" Aedan was evidently out of ideas.

She glanced nervously at the water, back to him, and sighed. "I suppose we go into the cave. It's not like we have any other options."

"This is a bad idea."

"I know, but it's all we can do." She swung her leg over Onyx's side, dropping into the soft sand, and started forward, tugging the horse along by his reins. Aedan followed suit, ending up in the lead somehow, whether because he wanted to be first or from his longer legs, Leliana wasn't sure. She wasn't going to object...much. After all, he was the one with the shield.

She took one look at the steep dropoff once they were inside and shook her head. _It's a cove, not a cave._

He nudged her and nodded towards the back of the overhang. There was a small wooden structure, weather-beaten and covered in vines, situated next to a large outcropping of stone. A rickety pier jutted out into the body of stagnant water; small black spots dotted the support beams and Leliana assumed they were barnacles of some sort.

"Looks like the home of an old bat," Aedan commented.

"Sounds about right," she replied. "Take Onyx's reins and let me check it out. If I see anything, I'll call you up." He nodded, catching the leather cords while Leliana went on ahead. She stuck close to the wall of the cove, headed for a large boulder. If she could get on top of that, she might be able to see through the cracks in the walls without being spotted. And if by some horrible chance, whomever was inside came outside, she'd be safer above them. No one ever looked up.

Running the last few steps, she leapt onto the craggy surface and hauled herself onto the stone, pausing to catch her breath and recover from the pain lancing through her leg. She held a hand to her knee, keeping it bent at an angle that kept her weight off her ankle, and returned to watching the hovel. The light from inside was flickering wildly, probably because someone kept passing between her and the fire.

She crept a bit closer, trying to hear what was going on over the crashing of the waves outside. It sounded like arguing, but over what she couldn't tell. The light shifted again, revealing a small cave behind the house, fenced in by twigs and stones.

Then she saw it. Jasper's horse. The mare was tied to a wooden stake, just out of reach of the water trowel.

There was no doubt about it now. Jasper's miracle woman was almost definitely a mage, and definitely a member of this cult operating out of Highever.

Leliana slid back a couple of inches, snagged her hand on a grip, and swung the rest of her body down to the ground before letting go. She jogged back to Aedan, who was waiting off to the side, holding both horses still even though they both looked like they were ready to run for it. She gave him an approving smile and took Onyx's reins back.

"See anything suspicious?"

"Jasper's horse is tied up out back," she reported. "Looks unharmed, but they've kept water from her. I couldn't tell if that was intentional or not, but..." She trailed off with a shrug. "Whoever's in there is arguing with someone else."

"I doubt they'd allow Jasper to keep his tongue flapping."

"So we should be expecting two mages, at the very least." Aedan gave a grim nod, looking past her to the home. "Follow my lead. I've got a plan."

"That's your job, isn't it? Coming up with the plans, I mean."

She flashed him a grin. "I _am_ the smart one." It was hard to see what face he made at her, but she assumed it was something akin to sticking his tongue out (hopefully not quite as childish).

"Let's get this over with," he grumbled with a sigh. Leliana nodded her agreement and began tracking through the sand-strewn stone, not bothering to try and conceal her and Onyx's approach. The light was still flickering wildly, but as they got closer and closer, it was easier to see shadows. Four of them, two unmoving and two constantly waving arms and jabbing fingers at each other. The argument became audible again when they were a few yards from the door. It was something about "what to do with the two in the back."

Leliana tugged up her hood and wrapped the edge of her cloak around her shoulder, hunched a bit, and raised her fist to knock. "Hello?" She made a half-frantic motion at Aedan for him to get down, and thankfully, he made himself look like somewhat of a mess before the door swung open. It revealed a young man, probably sixteen or seventeen, with disheveled hair and a frown plastered to his face.

"Who are you?"

She did her best to give him an apologetic smile. He didn't seem to buy it. "The storm, we were caught in it. It's damp and cold out here, doubly so out there, and we were wondering if you would allow us—"

He slammed the door in their faces.

Aedan bristled beside her, even went so far as to start reaching for the door, but Leliana caught him and mouthed, "Wait." He didn't look happy about it, but followed her suggestion. If she was right, he was only asking for permission, and if she was lucky, they'd let them in.

The door opened again a few moments later. "You can come in. I'll take your horses around back."

She slapped on an overly-grateful smile and passed Onyx's reins to the boy. "Thank you so much! You have no idea—"

"Yeah, yeah, shove it."

 _Charming._

He led the two horses to the pen with Jasper's mount, leaving Leliana and Aedan to show themselves in. The templar went first, simply because he chose to, and looked more nervous than a kid going to see a local healer. Leliana smiled faintly to herself at the irony of that statement.

Despite having broken-up walls, the shack was surprisingly warm compared to the outside air. The pair turned from the small hallway into the room that dominated the center of the small building, finding themselves not far from the source of said heat. It was a rather large firepit, dug right into the stone by magic, and was being fed by torn cloth and dry twigs. A girl was seated next to it, tossing sticks into the flames at random intervals, and refused to look at the guests standing in the doorway.

Leliana noted the door across the room; it was placed in such a manner as to lead into a tunnel system. That might be important later.

Another door was set to their left, slightly ajar, revealing darkness and shadow darker than Leliana thought possible. This entire building made her skin crawl, but just _looking_ at that room made her want to run for it.

Two women, one somewhere around Leliana's age and the other older than Dorothea, came from the room, followed by a middle-aged man. The woman carried a staff, gnarled and clutched so tightly she could probably pass it off as a walking stick. Leliana was suspicious enough to believe otherwise. While she was probably the same woman Jasper had talked about last night, she was definitely a mage. She just...gave off that feeling.

"Damien said we had visitors." The woman's voice sounded like nails on a board and made chills run down her spine. "He never said they were so...fit."

Out of the corner of her eye, Leliana saw Aedan's fist tighten on the hilt of his sword. So he knew something wasn't right as well. She had hoped as much. He should've known that since she told him about Jasper's horse, but Aedan didn't come off as the overly suspicious type. He might've wanted to believe her counterpart was right and she was wrong, and she didn't blame him; she wanted to believe that too, but after being gone for so long, she couldn't ignore the fact that something had happened.

"Are you travelers?" the younger woman asked.

Aedan took the lead. "We're bounty hunters for Teyrn Cousland," he explained. The lie came from him so easily, Leliana could've believed he had experience lying. "Looking for a bandit leader. He was last seen on the coast, but..." He shrugged sheepishly. "Our hunt for him hasn't gone so well."

"Ah, the storms," she replied. "They'll do that. Highever doesn't typically get such terrible storms."

Leliana could imagine Aedan giving her the "I told you so" look if he didn't have to act surprised.

"I'll keep that in mind for future reference," he said smoothly.

Silence lapsed over the room, the only sound that of the girl's fueling of the fire. The three standing across from them seemed entranced by its flames, as did Aedan, but Leliana's eyes never wavered from the elderly woman and her staff. She didn't trust these people whatsoever. They were hiding something, namely Jasper.

"Thank you for letting us stay here," Leliana said carefully.

The mage glanced up from the fire and smiled coyly. She had to resist the urge to reel back and grimace; that smile made her sick to her stomach. "But of course, my dear. It won't do us any good to look like hermits on the coast."

She gave a small smile. "You might want to, ah...rethink your living space, then. It...it feels like somewhere a hermit would live."

"You are quite the Orlesian," she said, chuckling.

 _Yes, sure, believe that. I don't care; I'm trying to figure out what we should do._

The front door opened and closed, followed by a mild stream of curses, and the teenager, Damien, reappeared in the doorway. He pushed past Aedan and Leliana, going to sit beside the firekeeper. They exchanged a few hushed words, but not before Leliana saw what he was concealing. Dark liquid, dripping from his arm. Blood.

She shook her head. "Just pointing out what many would agree was obvious."

The woman wasn't paying attention anymore. She was more concerned with Damien. "Did you tend to our guests' horses?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said. Leliana tried not to be awed by the show of respect.

"And assist our other guests with their things?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Other guests?" Leliana interjected. "I didn't realize others would be passing through such a remote area."

A patronizing smile covered the woman's features. Her two friends started toward the table against the far wall; dozens of wicked knives were cluttered across it. Leliana's hand drifted closer to the pommel of her blade. "Usually it's quiet out here. You know how it is."

She felt something pressing on the back of her neck, right at the base of her skull. It was uncomfortable, but more than bearable. At first, all it did was make her head twitch to the side slightly. Then it became nothing more than a pest, something telling her that yes, this woman was a mage, and yes, she was a blood mage.

The elderly woman's eyes narrowed. "Are you feeling all right, dear?"

Leliana scratched the back of her neck. "You and I both know that's not going to work."

Another patronizing smile. "What won't work, dear?"

By now, the two others had chosen a pair of daggers each, and were watching Leliana and Aedan with renewed interest.

"I know about your list."

The woman paled considerably. So did the two rogues. The man recovered first, face twisting up in a sneer. " _You're_ the one he said would be a problem."

Aedan drew his sword. The man lunged for him, but Aedan swatted aside both daggers and drove the silver blade through his chest effortlessly. The younger woman let out a cry of anguish, the mage started speaking frantically, and far off, ever so faintly, Leliana was aware of Aedan collapsing beside her. It didn't matter now, though. What mattered was stopping the blood mage.

Luckily for her, neither of the two women were all that bright. She had one arrow whipped across the room in a heartbeat, sinking into the rogue's neck, and the other thrown directly into the witch's shoulder. With where it struck, she should've collapsed and started bleeding out, but instead, she summoned a chunk of the stone beneath her feet and threw it forward. Leliana dove out of the way and pulled her bow off her shoulders, knocking an arrow to the bowstring and having it fired in a matter of seconds. It hit her in the center of the chest with enough force to knock her off her feet; she collapsed as well, coughing up a mouthful of blood. She'd be dead in less than a minute.

Leliana got up off her knees, eyes narrowed on the two teenagers sitting by the fire. Neither of them moved during the small fight, and they remained sitting where they were now, totally unfazed by the woman staring at them.

"Damien, go let them out."

"Got it." The boy leapt to his feet and ran through the back door, presumably to free their other "guests." Or at least, Leliana hoped he was told to free them.

The girl didn't move, so Leliana edged towards Aedan, who had rolled onto his side and started coughing hard enough it sounded like he was going to hack up a lung. As she crouched beside him, it became apparent there was blood coming up with each cough, but she wasn't sure what kind of spell could be used so quickly as to cause internal damage.

While he coughed, she reached over to his satchel, rooting through as quickly and carefully as she could manage, and finally produced one of the healing potions. He watched her warily as she popped the cork out, brows knit together; her hands were shaking, and no matter how practiced her motions seemed, no matter how calm she made herself look, that shaking gave away the panic she was feeling.

Leliana _refused_ to lose someone else to these mages and their friends.

"Do you think you can stop coughing?" Aedan gave one hard cough, spitting out blood onto the jagged stone, and nodded weakly. He reached for the flask, but she gave him a hard stare, and shook her head. "I don't want you dropping it. Sit back."

His eyes narrowed further. He didn't trust her.

"Aedan, please."

His eyes met hers, focusing so intently it actually scared her, but she resisted the urge to give in. They glared at each other for several minutes until Aedan started coughing again, at which point she went to grab his arm, but he recoiled, terrified.

"She tried to force a demon on him," the girl said softly. "I don't blame him for being suspicious."

Leliana looked between him and the girl, still sitting and tending to the fire, and sighed. "We don't have time for this. _You_ don't have time for this. You keep coughing like that, and you'll fill your lungs with blood and choke on it. Trust me, Aedan. Please."

He only kept coughing.

She wanted to scream in the worst way. He had looked away from her in his fit, but she grabbed him by the chin and turned his head back to her. His hand latched onto her wrist, and the murderous stare he gave her, she thought he might actually still be able to kill her in this state.

"I'm not losing you, too," she snapped. "We've gotten through most of this mess together and we're going to finish it that way. Stop struggling."

The next few seconds passed so unbearably slow that Leliana almost knocked him unconscious and forced the potion down his throat. But when she went to, his grip on her slackened and he released her, watching her just as suspiciously as before. She couldn't blame him for it; if she had known that witch could've gone so quickly between targets, she wouldn't have taken so long to kill her.

"Slowly," she said. He nodded, barely, once. His skin was ridiculously pale; he'd lost enough blood coughing like that. He probably had enough in his lungs to drown any man who wasn't trained the way he was.

Her hands were still shaking, but Aedan latched onto her free one, and she held it back, helping him stay upright. She only let a mouthful or so out of the flask with each tilt, frowning slightly as he swallowed each of them. She was waiting for him to throw it back up, a sign that this was useless, but he kept the potion down, and by the time they'd gotten through half of it, his grip on her had tightened. Some color had returned to his face as well, and he was holding her wrist to his mouth, keeping the flask where it was.

For a half a second, Leliana thought she might be able to cry from how relieved she felt. Then she made a face and pushed it aside, putting on her typical emotionless expression.

"That's adorable!" The urge to scream returned, but her relief almost doubled at the sound of Jasper's voice. "In a sad sort of way, at least. Is he all right?"

She didn't look back at him, but her brows furrowed. "He should be perfectly fine once he gets this down."

The light in Aedan's eyes made Leliana's throat tighten. She was sure if he didn't have that vial in his mouth, he'd be teasing her. And she really didn't want to smirk at him, but she did anyway, and she thought he returned it.

 _No._

The instant he was finished drinking the potion, she got up and left, bloodied and all.


	14. Chapter 14

Aedan was sick of it. It had only been three hours since he and Leliana had found that shack, and the rain was still coming down. The waves had stopped being ridiculously large, but they still splashed into the entrance to the cave.

Well, _cove._ That was all Leliana had said to him since Jasper had reappeared with a group of templars. She spent ten seconds correcting this terminology before retreating to the sandy stone out front. While she did that, the rest of them moved outside and built a fire as far from the stagnant pools of water as they could. He was currently sitting between Jasper and Damien, eyeing the four templars that had gone missing, and the young woman, an apprentice recently turned mage. He was at her Harrowing, and when the Knight-Commander said it was the fastest he had ever seen, Aedan could believe it.

Solona Amell was definitely not pleased to see Aedan. Earlier, he had pulled her aside to demand answers for her being out here, and she had simply said, "Knight-Captain." Then she sat with Damien and refused to speak to anyone, something she had always been good at. As a matter of fact, all Aedan ever remembered was her talking to Cullen in a hushed voice.

He never disliked Solona. Sure, he was suspicious of her and her talent, keeping an eye on her at all times, but he always figured she was nice enough...when she chose to speak. But he did find the use of that title to be extremely annoying. He didn't _want_ to be Knight-Captain. He liked where he was, but despite it, Knight-Commander Greagoir wanted him as his second, and there was no avoiding it. Aedan definitely tried, even used this venture as a way to get away from it, but he was no fool; as soon as he returned to Kinloch Hold, he'd be promoted.

But that wasn't the thing that was getting on his nerves. It was Leliana, marching off to ignore the rest of them, patrolling the entrance to the cove in intervals, and walking back every once in a while to check on the captives they'd saved. But not once did she even look in his direction, choosing to avoid him as best as she could. The only time she really talked was when she asked Jasper if he was all right. He'd shrugged, said something about it only being a few uncomfortable hours, and that he was more concerned with his horse's well-being than his own.

Aedan had definitely wanted to go ask her what her problem was, but he remained seated, deciding it would be wiser to give her time. So instead, he turned to Jasper, brows furrowed, and asked, "When we confronted the mage, her man said something about Leliana."

Jasper arched a brow. "You've already figured out that they know who we are. Why would it surprise you that she was recognized?" He waited, then added, "What is this, more templar buffoonery?"

"It's not that," Aedan replied with a shake of his head, though he was unsure of what statement that was actually directed at. He chose to ignore the snarky comment...for the most part. "I was more surprised that they didn't jump us the instant they saw Leliana. But that's not what I'm talking about. The man I killed said something about Leliana being the one they were going to have trouble with."

Jasper's grin faded into a confused expression. "Why would they think that?"

"His words were, 'You're the one he said we were going to have trouble with.'"

His eyes went wide. "Someone knows." He twisted around and shouted to the silhouette pacing back and forth a hundred yards or so away. She froze, but started walking towards them when Jasper waved for her. When she joined them, Jasper said, "Someone betrayed us."

"What?" Leliana spoke the same time Aedan did, and for a brief moment, her eyes met his, but they snapped back over to Jasper that very instant.

"They know, Leliana. Someone knows about your...uh..." His eyes flicked nervously to the rest of the party, Aedan, two young mages, and a group of unknown templars. "Look, they just know. How many people did you tell? Who?"

Understanding dawned in her eyes. So _she_ knew what Jasper was talking about. Aedan still had no clue what was going on. Before he could even get the chance to ask what they were talking about, she said, "I only told you, Armand, and—"

She cut herself off; Jasper wasn't patient enough to give her time to process who had turned on them. "Who, Leliana?!"

"Leon," she breathed.

Jasper looked like he'd taken a punch to the gut. Leliana looked like she couldn't believe it, but at the same time, could believe it. Aedan had no idea who this man was, aside from knowing he was the Seeker in charge of the rest of them. He'd seen the man once, maybe twice, before the three of them left the Circle for Highever; that was nowhere near enough time for Aedan to know the man well enough to gauge his loyalty to the Chantry. But by the look on Jasper's face, it definitely wasn't something he had expected.

"That slimy bastard."

"It makes sense," Leliana said calmly.

"How in the Maker's name does it make sense?"

"You know what he was like."

The man paused, clearly infuriated, and stood without another word. He stormed off to the front of the cave, stepped outside, and dropped on the sand with a barely audible shout of fury. The entire group stared at his back until he got up less than thirty seconds later and marched back. He jabbed an accusatory finger at Leliana, snapping, "This is why you should've just let Liam put you in charge!"

"You think we'd be in a better situation if I was leading?"

"Maybe not, but we wouldn't be facing betrayal!"

"Of course we wouldn't! We'd all be dead!"

"This is your fault! If you hadn't been such a coward, Leon might not have had the guts to do this! Because of you, Armand, Alice, and Luke are dead!"

Aedan watched her closely, but Leliana didn't flinch. As a matter of fact, the comment only made her lose her temper. "You don't think they would've tried to turn me?"

Jasper's eyes narrowed. "You and I _both_ know _exactly_ why they couldn't have succeeded."

Her eyes narrowed too.

"Because of your stupid games with Leon, because of that _stupid_ competition, he's trying to beat you again. If you'd just been able to keep it up for one last thing, he'd have accepted his loss!"

"I couldn't just let it continue! After he found out that I...that Liam..." She started tripping over her words. Aedan's eyes widened as he looked between them; their argument was helping him piece everything together, but he was still missing that one piece of information. "Jasper, I told him so he'd feel better and not want to make this an even bigger mess."

"And look at how _that_ worked out!" he snarled. "You know what? Maybe you're right. Maybe we are better off following the incompetent ass of a man that betrayed us. At least he's gotten us somewhere." It was clear by her reaction that Leliana wasn't prepared for that. "But you've gotten Aedan and I this far, and now that we know what's going on, I'm _not_ leaving. I'm not waiting for someone who actually knows what they're doing to come to our aid. _You're_ the Seeker for a reason. So _do your job._ "

She flinched. "Jasper—"

"No!" he exclaimed. "If you hadn't accepted Liam's offer, it never would've gone this far! If you just hadn't told Leon, it wouldn't have gone this far! But you did, and now Leon's jealousy has gone off the deep end and we're facing a crisis because of it. Our friends are _dead,_ Leliana. There's a good chance Leon sent us out here to die, too. Is this starting to make sense yet? He's getting rid of anyone you might be close to. He's eliminating anyone who might ally with us and removing templars who know how to do their job. And you know what's going to happen in the end? The blood mages will do what blood mages do. _Kill._ "

Aedan was more than surprised, to say the very least.

"You are the only one of us that's even remotely qualified to deal with this mess," Leon said. "Not me, not him—" He pointed at Aedan. "—not them, not any of us. Liam made his deal for a reason. He saw something in you, so act like it. You're a Seeker and he sent Seekers to deal with this. Either step up and fix this, or march back to Kinloch and tell Leon he won."

This was the first time Aedan thought Leliana had actually given up. He didn't like the way she looked when she was defeated. It was sad, pathetic even.

"I can't. Don't you get that?"

"Why? Why can't you? Because you're not a leader? Leliana, you've led Aedan and I without fail for nearly a week. We've figured out foreigners are replacing templars, that they're releasing mages to a cult and advocating blood magic, and we've found out that they're using people you're close to like a hit list. We _know_ Leon is an enemy, but whether or not he's done that of his own free will is still up for debate. And regardless of that, there's a good chance he's turning the rest of them against us as we speak. When that happens, and it will, there will only be two of us left that can put up any resistance. Everyone that came to Ferelden with us is an enemy as well, and none of us can set foot near the Circle again. We can't warn the Knight-Commander, we can't protect the mages, and we can't save our friends. Our only option is to run for it as soon as this storm lets up, and pray to the Maker that we get away from Highever fast enough that Leon loses us."

All she did was nod. What was there to say to that?

* * *

That was the highlight of Aedan's day, the argument. Now it was late at night (he assumed) and the storm was still raging outside. Since Jasper and Leliana's fight, he had moved away from the campfire to gather his thoughts, and try to piece together everything that was said. Something about Leon and Leliana always trying to better the other, and Leon being jealous led to his betrayal, but Aedan wasn't exactly sure what it was still. He had an idea, but wanted Leliana to come out and say it right to his face; he wasn't good at connecting the dots.

Problem being, he wasn't exactly sure where she even was. After the argument, Leliana had retreated to the front of their new hideout to gather _her_ thoughts, but since then, she had disappeared in the dark to Maker only knows where.

She was avoiding him, and he knew it. But why she was eluded him. The only reason he was still awake, unlike the others, was so he'd get the chance to talk to her alone. He could only imagine how busy the next few days would be. There was a tiny chance they'd have the opportunity to talk privately, and Aedan wanted to seize the one that had arisen now. The people they rescued needed time to rest, but he and Leliana didn't. It was the perfect opportunity.

 _If only I could see her..._

While he waited for her to reappear, he thought back to what went on when they found the shack he was sitting against, and sighed. That had to be the cause of it. She wanted to help him, but all he did was assume she was a demon in disguise. Of course, the blood mage _did_ attempt to force a demon on him only moments before, but resisting for the few seconds he had to took away his ability to think rationally. He kept thinking that the blood mage was infallible, Leliana had died, and he was going to end up living in some horrible nightmare for the rest of his life.

And the fact that she was so adamant about "not losing him" made him even more suspicious. Demons were able to get into your head and see what you wanted; it wouldn't have been very hard for one to see he liked her. After he realized that it was actually real, he had to remind himself that while a demon might mean it in a more suggestive way, Leliana only meant it as a friend would. She had lost a friend to these mages before, and she didn't want to lose another one.

He scratched the back of his neck and shook his head, resting his forehead on a drawn-up knee. Despite not being sleepy, he was exhausted. He ached everywhere and his head was throbbing, though he was sure that was from the sound of thunder and the constant drum of rain outside. Had they been in the possession of more healing potions, Aedan would've fished one out and used it. But sadly enough, he only had the one remaining after Leliana helped him drink the other, and he wanted to save this one for her. The potion she had used earlier in the day must've worn off by now.

Then it occurred to him she might _not_ be avoiding him, but sitting somewhere because it was too painful for her to stand. Or she could be avoiding him, along with sitting because her ankle hurt. That last one definitely seemed more plausible to him.

Regardless, Aedan got to his feet to track her down. He knew she wouldn't have wandered out of the relative dryness inside, but that didn't mean finding her would be easy. There were plenty of places to hide in here, and after watching her creep up to that shack, he was pretty sure she could hide wherever she wanted to.

It was then he realized why Marcus had preferred being stealthy to Aedan's preference of a good fight. It seemed so much easier and all the safer.

He made his way out to the opening first, inhaling the salty air deeply. It felt good in his lungs, smelled much better than their dank cave, and the smattering of raindrops cooled his neck. He remembered why he enjoyed the rain they so rarely got at the tower, and he remembered wishing he would have the chance to come back to Highever. It was once, during training, and he had long since forgotten it. When the memory came to him, he distinctly thought that these were certainly not the circumstances he wanted to return on.

Aedan peeked his head out a little further, looking up at the sky. The clouds weren't nearly as thick as they were earlier, but still thick enough that he could only see stars when there was a break in them. Not once did he see the moon, but then again, he didn't exactly stay out long enough to have a lucky break...literally. A brief check of the storm, then back in he went. He didn't want to catch a chill and hold the rest of them back because of a sickness.

With a sigh, he went to return to the fire, but as soon as he turned around, he saw Leliana standing right in front of him. Her appearance was so sudden he nearly jumped out of her skin, and while she would laugh at scaring him before, she simply raised a brow this time.

"You should be sleeping," she said flatly.

He shook his head, letting out a huge breath of disbelief. "Can you stop that?"

"I'm not doing anything. I'm just walking. Technically, standing."

"If we're going to get technical, I'd also say breathing."

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "What are you doing, Aedan?"

Suddenly, this didn't seem like such a good idea. He took a step back, a very small one, and rubbed the back of his neck, looking at his feet. "I was, uh...looking for you."

"Why?"

"Because I felt like it," he said defensively, head snapping up. "This isn't exactly the best time for you to go wandering off." He saw her flinch and realized she was still trying to get over her fight with Jasper. His shoulders sagged and he sighed. "I'm sorry, I didn't—"

"It's fine."

He stared at her for a couple of seconds before reaching into his satchel and producing the last potion. "Here, you should—"

"I'm fine." Aedan frowned, opened his mouth to say something, and was interrupted. "You should get some sleep. You've had a rough day."

The templar blinked, taken aback. She was cutting him off _purposely,_ the sneaky little shit. Aedan found it annoying and funny at the same time, and had no idea how to respond to it, let alone the expectant stare she was giving him. He only stared back, blinking rapidly, and when he made no move to say something, Leliana gave an exasperated groan and turned on her heel to return to wherever it was she came from. Aedan panicked and reached for her, catching her hand, and she yanked it back, shooting him an accusatory glare.

"Leliana, wait, please," he begged.

"I waited and you did nothing."

"What did you want me to do?" he demanded. She didn't say anything, but looked away, and for a moment, Aedan actually thought she looked vulnerable. This terror of a woman reminded him of a mirror just before it shattered. The look she was giving him was that of someone so desperately trying to keep it together; she was trying so hard to look furious, but she only looked more and more broken with each passing second. Seeing her like this made him want to pull her into his arms and reassure her, but he refrained from doing so.

"I don't know," she muttered. She hugged herself and sighed, looking back down at the sand again. "Is this about Jasper and I?"

He blinked, but shook his head. "I was more concerned with how you were doing. I mean..." He flashed the vial of red liquid, sloshing around in his hand. "It's been a while and...well, yes, I was wondering what you and Jasper were talking about."

"Of course you were." That last bit seemed to make it worse; her shoulders sagged and she looked like she was about to be blown over by the wind.

Aedan rushed to fix his mistake. "B-but it can wait. What's more important is—"

"I haven't been completely honest with you, Aedan," she whispered. Leliana went to make a motion with her hands, but a flash of lightning revealed the red stains on her hands, and he frowned. "I'm not—" He caught her wrist with his free hand, staring at the blood dried onto her palm.

"What is this?"

Leliana stared at the same red stain he was, face impassive. "It...I couldn't... I thought it..."

He shifted and stuck the potion flask under his arm so he could open his satchel. After shoving it back inside, he produced the piece of cloth he used to rub down his sword after sharpening it. He stuck it out in the rain, then went to work scrubbing her hand clean. The whole while, Leliana simply stared at him numbly. She didn't even blink, not even when he took her other hand and cleaned it as well.

"I was so scared, Aedan." His head snapped up as he stashed the cloth back in his bag. She was watching him now, though it looked like she was also trying to keep him from noticing, like she was...embarrassed? He offered a small smile and went to speak, but she seemed oblivious to it even though she was looking right at him. "I didn't think you were going to listen to me. I thought you were going to die and I just...I don't know. Then Jasper made it out like it was...like we were..."

She started shaking again, and then he understood. She wasn't upset with him. She was upset with what Jasper implied. She was _scared_ of it.

While he had been distracted by the realization, she had started rambling about some woman and bards, clutching at his hands so desperately that her knuckles whitened. When her words became more focused, his mouth went dry. It was the first sentence she had said that made any sense, and it made him sick to the stomach.

"My closest friend tried to kill me."

" _What?_ "

Leliana nodded. She was staring at their hands; hers were pink from the nip in the air and the water on them. His were enveloping hers, holding them just as fervently as she was holding his. "Marjolaine. She was...we were...it was..." There was more shaking from her, and Aedan was again reminded of the almost-shattered mirror. "She framed me for treason and I...I don't know. The Orlesians...they... I almost..."

He didn't want her to say it. Not because he didn't care, but because it was turning her into a mess again, and he didn't want to see her like that. It made his chest ache.

She fell against him, wrapping her arms around his chest, and he was suddenly glad he'd taken off his armor in favor of the cotton he wore now. "I loved her, and she tried to have me killed in her place..."

 _That's a good reason to be afraid of a relationship..._

Aedan wasn't sure what to do. She wasn't crying, but it was clear that she was having some sort of panic attack, and she sounded like she was on the verge of it. So instead of standing there like an idiot, he did what he could, and he held her to his chest. That only made her tighten her grip on him, but he wasn't going to complain.

"I can't do this, Aedan. I'm not what Jasper thinks I am. I can't even keep from having an anxiety attack around someone who—"

"Leliana." He cut her off and pulled back to grab her by the shoulders, plastering the biggest smile he could manage to his face. "When he said it was you who got us here, he was right. We wouldn't have made it this far without you."

"You don't understand," she protested. "I...I'm not like the others."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Do you remember what I told you about our training? How we're in the third year?" He nodded suspiciously, trying to figure out where she was going with that, but coming up empty. "The rest of them, they don't know what Seekers can do. The Order doesn't tell us."

"Then how do you...?"

"The Seeker that was tasked with our training, Liam, he... When I started getting abnormally good at the jobs we were given, he started assigning me harder things to accomplish. Sitting still in the courtyard for five hours, defeating four opponents at once, fasting for days on end. And when that didn't stop me, Liam made the offer to advance my training."

Aedan's eyes widened. "So you're..."

"I'm not a recruit, Aedan," Leliana muttered. "I _am_ a Seeker of Truth."


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** **I wanted to say thanks for all the support I've gotten for this story over the last month or so, and to also let y'all know that now that Leliana's secret is out, the Seeker training will only appear if it has relevance to the chapter itself, instead of being there to give insight to Leliana's feelings on it and to get to know Armand a bit. Also! The POV will start shifting back and forth more often, I promise. More templar buffoonery from Aedan because, y'know, who doesn't want that? But anyway, thanks again, and I hope y'all enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

 _The storm will let up soon, he said. It won't last all day, he said._

Leliana was standing at the front of the cave, hands planted firmly on her hips, and mouth turned up in a smirk. The rain had finally stopped coming down in buckets, slowing to a steady drizzle, but the beach had flooded, and the fords connecting each section of dry land were at least a foot and a half deeper than yesterday. Her proof? Aedan.

He was standing waist-deep in the nearest one, holding his arms above his head, and giving her a helpless look. "I swear, I didn't know the rain would be _this_ bad."

She laughed and rolled her eyes, strolling outside to join him. The pelting of the rain felt nice on her skin; after spending most of the night a nervous wreck, what little sleep she had gotten left her feeling warm and suffocated when she woke up. It was oddly liberating to be able to walk out from their cave and not get drenched in a matter of seconds. She felt free.

"Seastorms do tend to be wicked," Leliana commented, stripping out of her weapons and armor. She kicked her boots off last, carefully positioning them so sand wouldn't get inside, and left the pile on a outcropping of stone above the water. The shoreline here was mostly jagged stones and a thick coating of rounded pebbles, but even a fleck of sand would annoy her to no end if she stepped on it.

Aedan made a face. "I haven't lived here in ten years."

"Remind me again why I took your advice on the weather," she said, pulling a leather cord from her belt. Since leaving the fortress, she hadn't had the opportunity to cut her hair, and two months later, that was becoming increasingly apparent. Just that morning, she woke up with it caught under her arm, and had to find a suitable jerkin to rip apart inside that shack. She used it now to tie her hair back before stepping into the water.

Leliana resisted the urge to yelp; the water was freezing. Aedan must've noticed what she thought of the water's temperature because he started laughing. It took her a few minutes to readjust, but when she did, she waded out to him fearlessly, letting her arms hang at her sides.

"If you're going to stand in the water shirtless, you should at the very least let your arms get wet." He frowned at her, seemingly embarrassed, and she raised a brow. "What, did you forget I could see your torso?"

His cheeks reddened a bit. "Well...yes? I mean...I came out to see how deep the water was...and I thought you were sleeping..."

"I _was_ sleeping," she said. "Then you stomping around woke me up."

He smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's fine," Leliana said, shaking her head. Her hair was almost long enough at this point to reach the water, even pulled back as it was. "I'm not a heavy sleeper, either." They stood there for several minutes, Aedan awkwardly trying to avoid her gaze, but she just did her best to hold his, and he visibly squirmed. "Please tell me you're not bathing."

His brows shot up and he laughed again. "Maker, no! I'll bathe when we get back to Highever. I'm not going to do that in this water; that's counterproductive. This water is dirtier than dirt itself."

"So you have pants on?"

"Of course, my lady!" he exclaimed sarcastically, doing a sweeping bow. "I'm in the presence of two women. I should be decent."

"Should be," she pointed out. "That doesn't mean you will be."

"I am," he said, smirking. "I only took my shirt off so it wouldn't get soaked." His eyes flicked down from hers briefly, but reasserted themselves elsewhere rather quickly.

"I don't have the luxury of being able to do that, as you have already pointed out."

He coughed nervously and tried to smile. "Yeah, uh...sorry."

She smirked and shrugged. "That just means we're even."

"Wait, what?"

"Oh, nothing." Leliana waved his question aside so casually that he sputtered for a response. Truth be told, she had spent a good five minutes staring at him before letting him know she was awake as well. And why wouldn't she? Despite her personal preference to _not_ drool over someone, it wasn't an easy thing to do when there was a shirtless man standing right in front of her. Especially when said shirtless man was actually attractive.

Aedan cleared his throat and she realized she was staring at him _again,_ though not as inconspicuously as before. "See something you like, miss?"

"You don't want me to answer that."

"Am I not pretty enough for you?" He pouted, which was quite the feat, considering he was trying not to laugh at the same time.

"How much blushing do you want to do today?"

"Oh." Aedan rubbed the back of his neck and looked away, whistling innocently. "Can we keep that to a minimum?"

"We'll see," she replied, laughing at the look on his face. He almost looked mortified. "Come on. We need to have a chat with that Antivan from yesterday before we leave."

"A chat?" He snorted as he followed her back to the shallower beach. "You're joking."

She shrugged. "I like to censor myself."

"That's a load of horseshit."

* * *

After trodding through varying depths of water on the coast, Leliana was more than glad to be back on the cliffs. She was even more glad to see the town and the castle as they approached, and much to her relief, it was only muddy. Very, very muddy. So muddy, in fact, that her feet would stick when she tried to walk, and it jerked her ankle around to the point that Aedan lifted her into Onyx's saddle. That gesture alone warmed her heart, and faintly, so faintly, she heard Jasper's half-disgusted, half-amused groan at the sappy smile Aedan was giving her.

The templars they rescued left to return to their posts, but Solona and Damien followed the three of them right up to the inn, awkwardly looking around like they belonged. Leliana exchanged glances with Aedan and Jasper, shrugged, and said, "You can't go back to the Circle, and we can't let you run off on your own."

Solona shrugged; Leliana was getting the impression she was a woman of few words. Damien, who seemed to have become far more pleasant since the death of the coast witch, inched closer to the older mage. "I go where Solona goes," he said bravely.

"And I'm not letting anymore mages fall into this convoluted scheme," she said.

"That's settled, then," Aedan said. "So we all go up to the keep for the night."

"And then run to..." Leliana trailed off, frowning. "That's a first."

"What is?"

"I haven't gotten that far." Jasper laughed. She was glad he wasn't so standoffish this afternoon, but she scowled at him regardless. "Don't laugh! As of right now, we can't stay at Highever, but we have nowhere else to go!"

"Easy, Lel," he said. "Worry about it when we're done interrogating this templar you two caught."

Her scowl deepened as Aedan offered her a hand. She shook her head, saying, "Fine, but we need to be gone by morning. Burning those bodies won't cover our tracks forever. Leon will find out we're not dead eventually."

Jasper nodded. "That's all well and good, but like I said, worry about it when we get there. I'll run inside and grab your things, all right?"

"I've got it," Aedan interjected. "I have things to get anyway. I'll be back in a minute."

The Seeker recruit blinked, looked at Leliana, and back to Aedan before shrugging. "Have fun," he replied whimsically, waving a hand over his shoulder. The templar nodded and headed inside, leaving Leliana with the two mages and her friend, who had since shifted expressions from surprised to overly amused. "So what's gotten into him?"

"What makes you think I know?"

He shrugged innocently. "No reason. Just that you two are always up each other's—"

"I'll hurt you if you finish that sentence."

He laughed. "You can't get off that horse without his help." She scowled again and chose to ignore him. But just because _she_ was done with that discussion didn't mean _he_ was. "You two seem awfully...chummy today..."

"Jasper..." Her voice dropped to a lower tone, the same one she used when she was threatening someone, but since she really couldn't get off Onyx without hurting herself, there wasn't much she could do.

"Did you do the deed?"

She choked on her next breath, laughing so hard she nearly fell from Onyx's back, and no matter how irritated she wanted to be, she couldn't stop laughing. Jasper had said it with such an expertly calm face, like asking that question was as casual as asking about the weather, and for a moment, she almost actually believed it was innocent. But she knew him, and nothing the man _ever_ did had innocence behind it.

"We talked and that's it," Leliana managed to say through breaths.

He arched a brow. "Talked? That's it? That's no fun."

"Depends on what you're talking about," Damien said.

Jasper blinked, laughed, and jabbed a finger over in his direction. "I like that kid." The mage shifted his feet awkwardly, smiling in a slight way, and whispered something to Solona. She frowned while he spoke, but nodded.

"Why are you having trouble walking?"

Leliana subconsciously turned Onyx so her uninjured side was facing both of the young adults. "On the way here, I was...hurt trying to outrun a group of bandits." Jasper snorted in amusement from her right and she shot him a glare. "I tore a ligament."

Solona frowned. "And you've been walking on it?"

"We can go with that," Jasper chimed in.

"I've done a lot more than walking," she admitted. "Running, fist fights, shooting my bow..."

"Without healing?" Her eyes went wide as she whistled in amazement. "Damn."

"A friend of ours bound it," she said. "He told us he couldn't heal it."

"He was a mage?" Leliana nodded. "Doesn't sound like a very good one, then. Torn muscles and ligaments are easy to heal. Drink enough healing potions and it'll heal in only a couple of hours." She took a few steps closer and Onyx danced back towards Jasper, but Leliana reached out to pat his neck comfortingly. "Do you mind...?"

"If I don't have to drink another of those rotten things, no," she replied. "Right side."

Solona nodded eagerly. "I haven't been able to cast a spell in weeks. This'll be fun." She ran around to Onyx's other side and wasted no time in removing Leliana's boot, rolling up the leg of her pants, and tearing off the linen. And of course, she wasn't gentle about it. The entire experience brought tears to Leliana's eyes. "I can see why he'd think this was too much, actually." She whistled again, poking the joint. That alone sent pain spiralling up her leg. "Torn ligament. Maybe a couple of bone fragments floating around. Looks difficult, but it's probably easier to heal than a broken arm."

"I told you," Jasper said, "we shouldn't have trusted William."

"He always did like Leon the most," Leliana replied. While Solona poked and prodded her ankle, sending little tendrils of healing energy through her leg at the same time, she and Jasper continued speaking. "From here on out, we only trust each other. Anyone else is an enemy."

"We should've acted like that from the beginning, but it's better late than never."

Leliana nodded. "After we get settled in the keep, I'll send word to Liam and the Lord Seeker. They need to know that the Order's been compromised, and despite not wanting to wait, we need all the help they can offer."

"And if Liam is in on it?"

"Do you really expect Liam to send us out here to die?"

"That's exactly what he told us the Order was doing."

"I wouldn't be here if they wanted _all_ of you to die," she said.

He shrugged as he mounted his horse, wheeling the mare around to face her. "I've got a theory about you, Leliana." She rolled her eyes while Onyx shifted, moving her slightly away from Solona.

"Lots of people have lots of theories about lots of things," the mage said.

"Anyway," Jasper said, frowning slightly. His eyes moved from the copper-haired girl to the Seeker sitting across from him, one brow arched. "My theory."

"Yes."

"You're the kind of person that cheats death like it's a game," he said.

She blinked, looked up at the cloudy sky, and nodded. "More like a sport, but I'm not the only one here who does it." She gave him a pointed look, much to his amusement, and he shrugged again. "Getting into a fistfight with Armand and falling over the balustrade. Does that sound familiar?"

He scoffed and elected to ignore the statement. "I suspect we'll get caught in another life or death situation, and you, like the rest of us, should be dead, _but_ you'll make death find you alive."

Before she could reply, Solona patted her leg and returned her boot and sock. "You should be fine from here on out. Just be careful. There are some things not even magic can heal." Solona smiled awkwardly before retreating to Damien's side, exchanging a grin with the younger man.

Leliana was frowning. "How old are you?"

"Eighteen," Damien said.

"Twenty," Solona added.

The two riders looked at each other, back at the young adults, and back at each other. "How did you even get out here?"

Solona turned to look at Jasper, who had asked the question. "A month ago, an older man, some apostate the Knight-Captain and a couple others brought back from the Bannorn, approached me when I was helping Damien with his research. It was late, and it wasn't uncommon for mages like him to be working through the night. It was only the three of us in the library, and he had been poking around about the members of the Circle. He...he knew I was taken when I was six, Damien when he was eight, but neither of us wanted to leave."

"So why did you leave?"

"We didn't," Damien snapped defensively. "We wanted to stay at the tower."

"He used blood magic," Solona whispered. "He dragged us to the entrance and killed the Knight-Captain before forcing us to follow him here. He left us with the witch and we haven't seen him since."

"How old was he?" Jasper demanded.

Solona glanced at Leliana, to Jasper, and to Leliana again. "Not that old. Maybe...your age...Seeker."

"Don't call me that." The girl nodded and she turned Onyx to Jasper, rolling her ankle; Solona had done a good job. "That rules out William."

"Not entirely," Jasper muttered.

Just then, the door to the inn opened, and Aedan reappeared, carrying a pack, his satchel, and a bag of supplies. The latter he tossed to Jasper, and the former to Leliana. She caught it, barely, and winced at the weight. Definitely not what she was expecting. "I took whatever we might need later. Everything else was left in our rooms."

She nodded as she flipped the cover of the pack off. Her armor. "Jasper, we need to get you something not so...recognizable." The Fereldan glanced down at the black and white armor and made a face bef nodding. "Once Leon discovers we've fled, he'll send the others after us, and there's no use running if we don't change what we're wearing."

"Suppose I should change as well," Aedan said, grunting as he mounted his horse. "I'll talk to my father about getting both of us a change of armor."

"I don't want to push it," Jasper replied. He looked to Leliana for help, but she only shrugged.

"If the teyrn is willing to aid us, why turn it away? Help will be sparse in the coming weeks," she said.

"It's up to you," he said. "But regardless, let's get a move on. Maker only knows who's watching us, and it's getting dark and cold."

"I agree. I'll ride first, see what's going on at the castle."

"We're right behind you."

Leliana held out a hand, helping Solona onto Onyx's back, and Jasper did the same for Damien. Aedan waited, seemingly impatient, and sent his roan off at a gallop for the gates. Jasper made a motion for Leliana to go on ahead, so she did. Onyx broke into a run easily, much to Solona's surprise. The girl yelped and clung to Leliana's waist, burying her face in her shoulder, and Leliana had to resist the urge to say something about the mage's lack of riding skills. After a few moments of it, she finally came to the conclusion that Solona likely never had to ride a horse in her entire life until now.

 _One of many things these two will have to learn,_ she thought bitterly. A glance over her shoulder told her that Jasper was in a similar position with Damien. He gave her a helpless look, to which she responded with a small grin, and returned her attention to keeping up with Aedan. He was a few yards ahead of her, weaving through the buildings with ease and kicking up chunks of mud as he went, splattering the few townsfolk that were still out and about.

The ride through the town was quiet, filled only with the sound of Aedan and Jasper's armor rattling as they rode and the hooves of the horses smacking into the freshly soaked earth. Now that she thought about it, she should've seen a storm coming; the mud was evidence of weeks of poundings from heavy rain. What awed her was how the buildings remained standing and looked no worse for the wear. But then again, years of living in a land will prepare you for the worst nature has to throw at you, and if she paid attention to her history, people had been living in Highever for several ages.

As they got closer to the keep, she could hear the sounds of soldiers going through their drills. Did Fereldans always practice marching? Or did they have a reason to be practicing?

She slowed Onyx a bit to give Aedan the chance to have the gate open by the time they got there. Jasper quickly caught up to her and Solona, slowing his mount to match Onyx's pace. "Didn't remember how high the walls were."

Leliana looked up and took in the massive stone structure looming over them. "I didn't know Fereldans were skilled enough to make walls that high." She saw him roll his eyes, and while it was a joke, she kept her face straight. Best to let the two behind them think it was a low blow when he knew better.

Aedan was several hundred feet ahead, conversing with a gate guard, and waved to them after a few moments. The four of them had just barely cleared the village itself, but now the two horses took off at a gallop again. The earth was more solid and easier for the horses to run through outside of the town, but it was still obvious that the muck had some give to it. _I'll have to clean his hooves later._

She was just as grateful as the horse was once they hit the cobblestone of the courtyard. Once they had passed the gate, both massive doors slammed shut behind them, and she took note of the series of walls, not just the single set. The one they had just passed through was much smaller and thicker than the one she was currently staring down. Definitely wasn't what she expected.

 _Maybe Orlais should take a page out of Ferelden's book. Certainly looks like this is a better idea than just one tiny wall._

Solona had already dismounted behind her, and she followed suit, dropping to the ground with a slightly metallic thud. She wasn't as soundproofed as she originally thought, but when was she ever going to need to be perfectly silent? All she had was a thin layer of chain beneath a leather jerkin. That wasn't defending much, but nor was it as quiet as simple leather would be. An even tradeoff, she supposed.

"How's your ankle?"

Leliana looked up from removing her pack and forced a smile. It probably wasn't as friendly as she was going for. "Perfectly fine. Thank you."

Solona's meek smile told her the mage didn't notice the flaw in Leliana's expression. Perhaps there wasn't one, and she had just imagined it.

"Can I take your horse, my lady?"

 _Where the hell did he come from?_

"Of course," she said, reeling over the stablehand's overly stealthy appearance. Off to her left, two others were taking care of Aedan and Jasper's mounts as well, leading them towards a small pen built into the wall. Several other horses were tacked in the stalls, either already done with their exercises for the day, or just getting started. Highever was getting ready for something, but _what_ that something was eluded her.

Aedan's mouth was moving, but over the shouting of the soldiers, what he was saying was inaudible. It must've had something to do with the elven man standing just behind him, as he turned and followed him after he finished speaking. Jasper waited for Leliana to take the lead, Solona and Damien falling in behind them.

The next set of gates was much smaller. Both doors were the usual height, but wider. Not as fancy as a portcullis. Leliana wondered how they drained all the water that would've accumulated in the inner keep; the ring they first came through had the portcullis for a reason. Did they leave the inner gate open and hope for the best?

"More doors," Jasper said. He was right next to her, speaking loudly enough he could be heard, and he was correct. They went through another courtyard, both sides flanked by an arched door and garrison towers. Just over the soldiers' heads, she could see the doors he was talking about. Exactly the same as the ones they just came through, except they were attached to a large stone building, one that towered over the walls and held banners snapping in the breeze. Twenty feet over the doors was a grayish-blue banner with a stylized laurel stampted in the center of it. It was held still by two bronze beams, somehow worked into the stone.

The servant went to lead them around the drilling guards, but one quick shout from their commanding officer, and they froze in rank, standing aside for the six of them. The elf hesitated before scurrying through the rows of guards, equipped in full armor and armed to the teeth with swords, daggers, and shields. None of them so much as blinked as they passed between them. Leliana found the sea of expressionless faces rather unnerving.

Two guards within the hall itself pulled the thick oak doors open for them, then let go of the handles and simply let them shut on their own. The resounding boom set her ears ringing.

"The teyrn will be with you shortly," the elf muttered before running off.

A quick glance around the room told her the guards here weren't going to be any different than the guards out there. She doubted any would even remotely look at her if she asked them a question.

Compared to the noise outside, the hall was quiet. Quiet, but with plenty of space that any noise would echo. Looking up, she couldn't even see the ceiling, though she could see more banners and the tops of the few carved poles stretching above their heads. Sconces dotted the walls, and two large tables stretched the length of the room, candles placed along to afford plenty of light. At the far end of the hall was a hearth, large enough to keep that entire end of the room lit.

"Wow." It was Jasper, naturally, and she almost wanted to swat the side of his head for breaking the silence. "This place is huge."

Aedan grinned sheepishly. "It's what you get being one of the most powerful families in Ferelden."

"That, and blood mages stealing signet rings," Jasper replied, straying away from the group a bit. "What door does that thing go to anyway?"

"I'll show you later. Right now—"

Another door, one far down the left wall, swung open to reveal a man flanked by two knights. Both were wearing armor expensive enough to by an entire farm. The man himself was dressed in what Leliana assumed was fine clothing for Fereldans, a dark blue shirt with black trousers, and carried a sword on his hip, though she doubted the weapon had seen much use over the last twenty years. His hair was grey and his face wrinkled, but not so much that he actually looked old. He seemed to be in his late forties or early fifties, and after closer examination, Leliana decided while the sword didn't have any real use as of late, there was a good chance this man could definitely swing it.

"Aedan." That voice alone sounded like it belonged to a man who had lived past his years. Tired, strained, but clearly the voice of a military leader. Leliana barely remembered that this was one of the men who had fought against the Orlesians, though she didn't remember where, or if the battle he fought in was a Fereldan or Orlesian victory.

"Father." Aedan's voice was much more solid, and much deeper. He seemed to straighten under his father's gaze, like he was trying to impress the man as much as he could. She put out feelers, trying to understand either man's body language, and all she got was the awkward sense neither knew exactly what to say.

"Aren't you going to introduce us?"

The templar coughed nervously and nodded. "Leliana and Jasper, Knight-Templars of the Grand Cathedral in Val Royeaux, and Solona and Damien of Ferelden's Circle of Magi, this is my father, Bryce Cousland, teyrn of Highever."

 _Good thinking,_ she said to herself. _Tell him we're templars when we're obviously not._

But at least they were safe for the night, or as safe as they were going to get. That ring she had in her pack opened a door somewhere into the castle, and if they had Aedan's original, there was no doubt they had copies made in case this one was lost.

Once the witch and her guards were discovered dead, there wasn't going to be any hiding from the mages.


	16. Chapter 16

Aedan didn't want to be there. Neither did the two mages. Jasper seemed all too happy to go down to the dungeons with Leliana, and the woman was just...morose. Aedan didn't imagine she wanted to do it, but Jasper was glad to. _Revenge,_ he had said, though for what, Aedan didn't want to know.

So instead, he was sitting in the small library, thumbing through a tome on Fereldan history, hoping to find mention of a place they could hide at. And, preferably, not haunted. He didn't think Leliana or Jasper would like that, or like hiding in a crowded city. If he found nothing, all he figured to do was suggest Denerim, or staying here and holding out with his family. The latter wasn't as appealing as he thought it may be.

Naturally, Solona and Damien were with him, albeit reluctantly. They didn't want to be anywhere near the interrogation, but it seemed they didn't want to be anywhere near him either. Still, it wasn't like he was going to let two _apostates_ wander off and get themselves into trouble. The chances of that happening vanished when he found them holed up with a bunch of blood mages.

Aedan never took Solona for the type to try, let alone want to, escape, or even remotely think of blood magic as a solution. He doubted she had used it despite her exposure. Damien, he wasn't so sure of. The boy was still an apprentice, but Aedan hadn't been near many apprentices for quite some time. He was typically stationed in the Circle's library, the gate, or patrolling the halls of the magi's quarters. The latter was the most common. Being in his current predicament often meant he had to be near the Knight-Commander in case he was ever needed.

He sighed in frustration and tossed the book aside, pinching the bridge of his nose. The kid jumped in fright, staring at him with wide eyes, but Solona didn't even blink. She was used to irritated outbursts from templars; Damien, however, was not. He was used to templars that wanted to socialize, templars that weren't as cruel or terrifying as the templars like Aedan.

Leaning his elbows on the table, he flicked his gaze up to the boy sitting across from him. He looked like he was about to cry, though Aedan couldn't imagine what he'd done to scare him so much. Solona was still browsing the selection of books, probably unimpressed with the mediocre stock Highever had, so he didn't think he'd done something terrifying. Maybe the lad was just jumpy?

"What are you looking for, Amell?" Changing topic. Always a better plan.

The woman sighed in exasperation, already annoyed by the conversation, and Aedan instantly regretted speaking to her. "Something I _haven't_ read yet. Do you know how many times I've read Brother Genitivi's journals? Or how many times I've read about Andraste and the Maker? Shartan? What about—"

"I get the point. Why don't you do something useful with that head of yours and think of a place we can go to tomorrow?"

"The only logical place would be Denerim."

Aedan sighed again, massaging his temples. He should've expected that answer. Solona was a mage, the scholarly sort, and spent her life reading books and practicing healing magics. She thought _logically,_ not _practically._ This wasn't a situation to think logically. It called for practical thoughts and practical ideas, an area Aedan liked to think templars excelled in.

"No, that's the worst place to go," he said. "If anything, we want to get away from Denerim."

"Explain."

"I think it's pretty obvious why we shouldn't go to the capital," Aedan snapped. "We can't stay here, so we run there, the only major city in Ferelden that someone can disappear in."

"Exactly why we should go there," she retorted. "Whatever mess you've gotten yourself dragged into is a lot more complicated than 'there's a blood mage here; go kill it.' We need to be miles ahead of them. Not a step, not two steps, miles. We can run all over Ferelden, run to the Free Marches, run to Antiva, run to Nevarra, but nowhere will we ever get away from this. No, we don't need to run. We need to _hide._ "

Aedan's eyes narrowed.

"Your Orlesian creep, she gets that. It's half the reason she was fighting with Jasper about running from the rest of their friends. We can't keep running. Eventually, we'll need to stop and face our pursuers, or we'll keep running until we run ourselves into the ground. If we hide, we can make them meet us on our terms, have traps and plans ready for each possible scenario."

He wanted to scream. "Then quit arguing about it if you're so sure 'the Orlesian creep' will agree with you."

Damien's brows shot up. "You don't think she's creepy?"

"I didn't say that," he retorted.

"Oh, yes you did," Solona said. She glanced over at him briefly and he was almost positive she was teasing him. What the hell?

He grunted as he got to his feet. "I'm not getting into this. Either stay here or come with me, but when I come back, you'd better be here, or—"

"Or what?" Solona snarled, suddenly hostile. She threw the book she had down with enough force that the table shook. "What will you do, templar? Lock us in that broom closet you pass off as confinement? Make our lives a living hell?" He glared daggers at her, furious. "How can you expect to do that when we can't go home? We can't go home because of you templars being dumber than rocks!"

Aedan wasn't the sort to beat a mage. If he caught any templars beating the mages, they were punished and reprimanded to an extreme. It was one of the few reasons they'd never had Seekers in Ferelden before, and of course, the one time the templars make a mistake, they get stuck with ten of them.

The temptation to do _something_ to her was overwhelming, but he marched out the door instead, slamming it shut behind him. Brother Aldous and his squires, the few servants, and an off duty guard nearly jumped out of their skin at the sudden noise, but Aedan ignored them in favor of storming outside.

Overhead, more clouds were swirling around, seemingly taunting the inhabitants of Highever with the prospect of unnecessary rainfall. Aedan honestly couldn't care whether or not it stormed again; the longer they stayed here, the longer they avoided confronting anything extremely dangerous, and the longer the rest of them had the chance at living. But then again, the longer they stayed in Highever, the more likely Leon was to send someone after them.

Aedan didn't care about that, either. He wanted to hit something. No, he _had_ to hit something, and soon.

* * *

"Down here."

Jasper followed the guard into the room first, not even noticing Leliana's hesitation. The light from the guard's torch illuminated the cell, revealing the Antivan man, currently strapped into a chair, already beaten and bloodied. Did he resist, or did the men of Highever try to take justice into their own hands? Leliana sincerely hoped it was the former.

But how could she walk into that room and do the same thing to this man that had happened to her ages ago? The same very thing that still gave her nightmares, the same damn thing that drove her to eventually be in this position, the same Maker-damned thing that made her the person she was today. What kind of human being endured months of torture only to turn around and commit the same punishment on another?

 _How am I supposed to live with myself?_

"Leliana?"

 _They killed Armand,_ she thought. _They killed Luke and Alice._ A deep breath, steeling her resolve. _They took our friends from us._ A few, noiseless steps into the dark. _They'd do this to me to find Jasper._ Another deep breath as she stopped behind the man. _They were going to do this to Jasper to find Aedan and I._

The guard left his torch in a bracket and returned to the barracks above the cells.

 _I_ can _do this._

Jasper slammed the cell door closed, turning back to face their captive with his arms folded over his chest. He looked determined, probably felt like hell. To Leliana, this _wa_ _s_ hell. She remembered the feeling, the fear, wondering if the next moment would be her last, and every moment she remembered is another moment her temper rose. Thinking of what happened in Ferelden's prison before she was given to the Orlesians only infuriated her.

She turned that anger towards the bastard sitting before her. He deserved it. He would _always_ deserve it.

Leliana slapped her hand down onto his shoulder, and the Antivan jumped, head snapping up quickly only to drop back down in pain from the light. Not used to it. She could use that. "One word, _one yelp of pain,_ and whatever chance you have at walking away alive is gone." He nodded. "Then we understand each other. Good." She squeezed once, watching for a reaction, before letting him go and pacing a ways away from him, arms now clasped behind her back. "Who are you?"

"A t-templar, m—"

She whipped around, but Jasper was already there, grabbing him by the throat and dragging his face closer. "Lying won't help you."

"But it's true! They...the mages, they...they promised me lyrium if I could...if I'd...I just want to leave," he stammered.

"Jasper." Leliana grabbed his shoulder, far more gentle with him than the prisoner, and pulled him away. The Fereldan man stalked to the corner of the cell, irritated, and stood there to stew in his annoyance. She raised a brow in his direction, but looked back to the "templar," crouching down to get on his level. "If you'd what?"

"If I'd watch for any travelers," he muttered, voice barely audible. "I...I wanted out of the Order, but...the Chantry holds lyrium over us like a leash, and I couldn't get away from it. They promised me a supply of lyrium if I'd tell the Runner—"

"Who is he?"

The man looked frightened enough at the mere mention of him. "He...uh..." He tried to look up, but flinched at the faintest flash of light, and dropped his head again. "The Runner is the reason you shouldn't have come." Leliana and Jasper exchanged glances, both frowning, and when she shifted her gaze back to the templar, he was staring directly at her. "They bind us to him. Make us his pets so he can serve our leader."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

Just talking about it made him panic, and he started shifting around in his chair nervously. "A binding ritual when they capture us. They put us through immediately so we're forced to aiding him. Sort of...sort of like a binding ritual for demons, except...we're people."

"But you said they offered you lyrium to help him."

"They did!" he exclaimed. "I wanted out of the Order, but since quitting lyrium is impossible, they approached me and promised a stockpile of it. The catch was, I had to let go of my 'templar pride' and help the Runner take down the templars in Ferelden. I agreed, but..." He shook his head and looked back at the floor, ashamed. "I wish I hadn't. This is wrong."

Leliana wanted to continue with that part of the conversation, but Jasper stepped in. "But who's the Runner? You still haven't answered that."

He audibly gulped. "The Runner... He's a blood mage, the most powerful I've ever seen, and he's almost like the second for the Fereldan branch—"

"Wait, the what?"

"You didn't know?" Jasper made a face and the templar laughed, _laughed,_ at what he probably thought was ridiculous. "This isn't just happening in Ferelden. Ferelden is the experiment, the place they test their theories and excuses on the public, and slowly turn Thedas against the Chantry." Leliana blinked; what else could she do? How in hell was she supposed to see _that_ coming? "If they successfully eliminate the Chantry here, then they'll move to Rivain and Antiva, then the Free Marches, Nevarra, and end with Orlais."

Jasper glanced at Leliana. "And they're using blood mages to take control of the templars."

 _Our chances of survival are dwindling just with this conversation._

Leliana ran a hand down her face and sighed. "Focus on the interrogation. We can speculate on our own after supper." Jasper nodded grimly, and for a moment, she wondered if he was as good at compartmentalizing as she was. Then she decided it didn't matter, so long as he kept his mouth shut until they were alone. "Now. The Runner. You were tasked with keeping an eye out for travelers so you could warn him." The man nodded. "Did you already tell him about us?"

"No, I...I was going to go to the meeting point tomorrow," he said. "Or...whenever you were already gone. He'd send someone to follow you. If it looked like you were becoming a threat to the operation, his spy would...uh...attempt to...remedy that."

"Doesn't sound like it would be pleasant," Jasper commented.

"It would not be," the templar said, hanging his head.

"How would he know you were ready for a meeting?" Leliana demanded, ignoring the side chatter. "Would you send word through a messenger or...?"

"I'd send a bird south and one of his men would meet me near the Bannorn," he said. "I've never...I've never seen the man myself. Not sure I want to, either. He's supposed to be powerful enough that smites don't work on him. He can take on ten templars by himself."

Leliana and Jasper exchanged glances again. "Sounds like we'd be great friends," the Fereldan said brightly.

 _Doesn't he take anything seriously?_ She recalled their argument earlier and shrugged the thought aside; he obviously could if he thought it was necessary. "To me, it sounds like we need to meet this Runner." Jasper nodded, a bit too eagerly for comfort, and she returned her attention to their prisoner. "What do you say to arranging your meeting with this man of his?"

* * *

He wasn't sure how he ended up at the Chantry, but he was immensely glad he did. Not the one in the castle, but the one in Highever, and he almost wanted to cry with relief. They'd have lyrium. If he was lucky, they'd give him more than a vial. One vial could hold him over for a week or so, but Aedan didn't exactly see himself having access to it like he did at the Circle. The lyrium he and Marcus had taken south was returned immediately upon their arrival and Aedan was wishing he had told the storekeeper he'd lost it just so he'd have it now.

It had taken him a while to realize why he'd been so violent, but when he did, he knew how to solve the problem. The only issue was actually getting to the Chantry. And now that he was there, he staggered straight over to the only familiar face. Alistair, the templar who had led him and Leliana to the place her friend's body had been discovered at.

He looked up from the ground to the man's face, wincing at the light behind him. It was so damn bright! _Maker, why?_ "Hello," he stuttered.

The younger man arched a brow. "Is there something I can do for you, ser?"

Aedan nodded hurriedly. "L-lyrium," he whispered, glancing at the farmers sitting only a few feet away. "I haven't...I haven't had it in nearly a week and...and..."

Alistair frowned, but nodded, beckoning the other man to follow him. "You don't have any on hand?"

"No," Aedan admitted. "This was...it was supposed to be a short mission. I didn't think..." He shook his head; it felt like it might implode at the motion alone. When he stopped, it went back to feeling like a blacksmith had taken a hammer to his temples. "I was only supposed to stick around until they'd seen the place you found the Seeker."

"So why haven't you left yet?"

"Long story."

Alistair led him to the back of the building, past the sisters' quarters, and into the storeroom, where he motioned for Aedan to wait. So he did, standing in the doorway with an arm wrapped around his torso. It hurt everywhere, not having the lyrium, and he yearned for it more than he had ever wished for anything in his entire life.

"Here," he said, returning with a small kit. "That should last you for a while. I'm not allowed to give out large quantities of our stock, but..." He shrugged. "You'll probably need it."

Aedan dug through the bag, pushing past bandages and salves, and dug out one of the tiny vials hidden at the bottom. The glass was cool to the touch, but he wasn't sure if that came from the lyrium withdrawal, or from the thing itself. He didn't pay much attention to Alistair as he pulled the cork out, hands shaking, and put the flask to his lips. The thought crossed his mind that lyrium was a leash, briefly, but he dismissed it as he felt his strength returning to him. The liquid was so cold he couldn't taste it, but as the lyrium hit his stomach, he felt a rush of warmth.

He'd never felt that relief before, but it was so overwhelming that he had to put a hand on a crate to remain upright. Alistair was watching him, concern strewn over his features, and Aedan nodded. "Thanks."

"Of course," he replied, making a motion for Aedan to head back out. The older man led the way this time, bag slung over his shoulders and head held high. Yes, he definitely felt better already, but it would be a few hours before his strength completely returned to him. Regardless, he was glad Alistair had been willing to help him, even with the possibility he might get in trouble for it.

Upon returning to the main hall, Alistair escorted him to the doors, and smiled faintly. "So this story of yours..."

Aedan raised a brow. "The one explaining why I can't go back to the Circle?"

"That's the one. Tell me."

"I didn't take you for a gossip."

"It's not gossip," Alistair retorted, scoffing as if wounded. "And besides, templars gossip like midwives." Aedan laughed at the accuracy and shrugged. "Why can't you go back to Kinloch?'

That pulled him up short. He glanced around, deciding there couldn't be much harm in telling the young man, and leaned closer just in case. " Let's leave it at my companions' friends are trying to kill us."

Alistair's eyes widened and he whistled in amazement. "Good reason." Aedan grew serious as he stood back, expression grave. Alistair sighed, gesturing to the doors, and said, "Whatever you're up to, I wish you luck. Come back in one piece."

"That'd be nice, come to think of it," Aedan replied. He was grateful that Alistair had actually left it at the betrayal of Leliana and Jasper's allies, unlike most. Anyone else would pry for details, but Alistair was respectful enough to leave it at that. "And thank you. We'll be needing all the luck we can get."

They shook hands before Aedan started out the double doors, sighing in frustration at the sight of rain. Of course it was raining. It always had to rain. Couldn't it snow for once? Or just...be sunny and warm?

With a grunt, he pulled up the hood of his cloak and started back towards the keep. He regretted not riding his horse down to the village. It was only going to be a miserable trod for him now. So far, this day wasn't shaping up to be great for him. The lyrium withdrawal had really gotten to him, Leliana had snuck up on him that morning while he was standing in the flooded fords, and it was raining. He'd had enough rain in the last two days.

But rain in Highever meant rain in Amaranthine, Denerim, and Gwaren. And rain meant snow in Redcliffe, the Bannorn, anywhere that wasn't near the coast. Ferelden winters were more unpleasant than...well, anything. No one got to avoid it. Sure, it came in massive thunderstorms for a large amount of land, but the rest of the country would spend six months blanketed in at least two feet of snow.

He'd have to make sure the Seekers accounted for that when they left tomorrow. It would take a host of new equipment for each and every single one of them, their horses, and it would affect the food they'd be able to eat, and where they'd get their water. Thin cloaks like the one he was currently wearing didn't do much to keep someone dry, let alone warm. He was also willing to bet neither of the two would particularly want to put their horses through that shit, but if they didn't want to, then neither would anyone else, and that meant there would be a lower likelihood of being followed.

Just as he was about to turn the corner and make his way across the muddy field, he heard the sound of hoofbeats approaching the Chantry. He looked over his shoulder and his eyes widened; it was Cullen, the young man who had literally _just_ taken his vows a few months before. Aedan had taken to mentoring him and Cullen had taken to the mentoring gladly.

"What the—?" Aedan frowned and he threw off the hood of his cloak, marching back to the Chantry. His calves were caked in mud after trodding through it for several days, and he couldn't get to a bath fast enough. He never liked being filthy; he supposed that was why his mother had never had to force him to take a bath. She said something about it once, how he wasn't a typical little boy like Fergus was. Still, he had ended up at a typical place doing typical templar things for typical Chantry sisters with typical Chantry views.

"Ser Cullen!"

The lad whipped to attention like he was trained to, but he probably couldn't even figure out why until he saw Aedan. His eyes went as round as saucers, hand drifting dangerously close to the pommel of his sword, but he didn't draw it. He watched Aedan carefully, but not once did he make to.

"What in the Maker's name are you doing here?"

"I..." He glanced around nervously, feet shifting anxiously, and forced his eyes to meet the older man's. "The Knight-Commander sent me."

"Why would he do that?"

"One of the Seekers," he said, "Leon, he said you and his two charges had been killed by the mages."

Aedan almost screamed.


	17. Chapter 17

Leliana didn't want to be there. They were wasting time exchanging pleasantries over the dinner table instead of planning. Didn't Aedan understand how important it was for them to leave? Or was he just enjoying time with his family? Either way, he was the only reason any of them were sitting at this massive table. Just four of them, though. Solona and Damien had retired for the night, leaving Leliana, Jasper, Aedan, and their most recent addition, Cullen, to entertain Lord Cousland and his family. She was between Jasper and an Antivan woman, Oriana.

 _Aedan's sister-in-law,_ she reminded herself. She looked at the farther end of the table, where the teyrn sat with his wife and eldest. _Eleanor, Fergus._ Between Fergus and Oriana was their son, Oren. She'd spoken to him a few times; the boy had a penchant for stories, both hearing and making up his own. Six years ago, she might've thought he'd make a good bard. Now she didn't even want to think of the Game.

Her eyes fell on the rat-like face of the other guest the Couslands were hosting. Arl Rendon Howe and his one of his sons, Thomas. Both hailed from Amaranthine, though Thomas had apparently just returned from a trip to Denerim. Aedan was across from her and next to the young man; Thomas seemed to like him, talking about their forays around Highever and Amaranthine with his brother, Nathaniel. From what Leliana understood, Nathaniel was older than Thomas, but then, why wouldn't Arl Howe bring him instead of this chatterbox? Whatever the reason, Aedan didn't seem so thrilled to be with Thomas as Thomas was to be with him. Whenever Aedan even tried to talk to Cullen, Thomas would interrupt and yammer on about something Leliana didn't care to hear.

As she went for her drink, plain water, she couldn't help giving the cup a quick sniff. After everything, that still stuck with her. Marjolaine had ingrained it in her to do whatever she could to check for poison. It wasn't like Leliana could drop everything, make a tonic, and dump it into her glass to see if anything reacted, so she settled for the simplest test. Though anyone who knew anything about poison was smart enough to use a scentless one, it was a force of habit.

Unfortunately for her, Teyrn Cousland didn't miss much. "What are you doing down there, templar?"

Her gaze shifted from Aedan's slightly alarmed expression to the teyrn's inquisitive one. She could approach this one of two ways, and she only had the time it took her to swallow a mouthful of water to decide. She could be direct and tell him exactly what she was doing, or she could give one of her usual dancing answers.

 _Fereldan. Probably smarter to be honest._

"Checking for poison, my lord," she said simply. He blinked, stunned, and Aedan choked on whatever it was he had just taken a bite of. For several tense moments, the only sound was of his coughing, accented by Cullen smacking his back.

Not once did her stare waver from Bryce's, but she did raise a brow when he seemed to sputter for a response. Luckily for him, his son was quicker. "Sounds like something an Orlesian would do." Leliana shrugged. "Though, may I ask why?"

She froze in setting her cup back down. She frowned slightly before releasing it, forcing her eyes over to the brown-haired monster of a man. He had smile lines she could faintly see through his beard and his eyes were crinkled like he spent most of his time laughing. It was probably just as strange for Fergus to be serious as it was for Jasper.

"There's no reason for it, my lord. Just a habit."

"A strange habit to have just 'picked up,' Orlesian or not," Bryce commented. "Doubly so for a templar."

When Aedan recovered, he spoke up. "Templars are far more engaged in politics in Orlais, father. Most know how to play the Game." Leliana wanted to do something to show she was grateful for his save, but if she dropped the teyrn's stare now, it would look suspicious.

"Is that so?" he wondered aloud, turning to look at his youngest.

Aedan nodded calmly. "Yes, father."

Bryce looked between them both before shrugging and returning to his meal. Leliana caught Aedan's eyes once she deemed it safe and tried to convey her thanks just by staring at him. A faint smirk was the only sign of acknowledgment she received; perhaps he was learning after all.

She directed her attention to her food again, taking a mouthful of the stew they'd been served, and chewing it thoroughly. In her experience, most Fereldan food was simple and somewhat bland, but that could just be the places she had eaten at while she was last here. This food had flavor, not much, but flavor nonetheless, and was well-salted. Fereldans apparently liked their salt. But regardless of the food, she was just glad that the topic of conversation had shifted from her.

"I wasn't aware women could join the templars."

 _Maker kill me now._ She'd spoken too soon.

"Anyone can join the templars so long as they follow the Maker's word," Aedan answered. "Leliana has more than earned her place."

"I like to think I have," she added, looking between Aedan and his brother.

"Have you seen a blood mage?" Oren asked, taking unnaturally long pauses between his words. He had the typical curiosity of any boy that age, though it seemed he had been taught to swallow before speaking. "Uncle won't talk to me about blood mages! He says they're evil things!"

"Blood mages are people, just like you and me," she said carefully. Her and Aedan's eyes met again, but his had narrowed at the statement, watching her warily. "And people make mistakes. Blood mages have only made a mistake. There's nothing different between us and them, let alone mages who don't practice blood magic."

"That's a bit pacifistic of a templar," Oriana said.

"I didn't join to kill mages," Leliana snapped. "It's worse to think of mages like lesser beings when they're—"

A hand on her shoulder cut her off. It was Jasper, naturally, and while she wasn't glad for his intervention now, she knew she would be later on. "What Leliana meant to say was she's not as aggressive as some templars are," he said. "You've had a long day, haven't you? Perhaps it's time for you to retire for the evening."

 _That's not even half of it._ She nodded anyway; that was probably the best idea, considering she was digging herself into a hole. A hole where she'd have to be more truthful than she already was with the rest of the Couslands, where she'd have to explain every little detail about what she and Jasper were here for.

Her movements were stiff and mechanic. Without a word, she stood and strode right out of the main hall. Leliana knew she was headed for the room Solona and Damien were undoubtedly already asleep in, but she didn't care if she woke either of them up. She didn't think she would, regardless. According to Aedan, she moved without making any noise whatsoever. Perhaps the noise she heard when she walked was imagined.

She walked briskly, sliding through the door only minutes after escaping supper. Damien was awake, sprawled out comfortably in the center of his bed, and Solona was snoring softly. She spared a glance to the boy, thumbing some sort of amulet as he watched Solona sleep. He didn't blink, had the far-off look of someone lost in thought, and Leliana suddenly didn't want to disturb him. But still, she closed the door behind her, and made her way to her things, deciding tonight was not a night for sleeping.

At the sound of the lock clicking shut, Damien jumped and his eyes snapped to her. He shoved the amulet under his tunic, terrified, and she almost smiled. "It's all right."

"I...I know," he whispered. "You just startled me." He looked down at his hands, folded over his stomach, while he spoke. It was almost as if he was embarrassed, ashamed even.

Leliana was shifting through her thin chain shirt when she paused to look up at him, frowning slightly. It felt good to have her armor on again, what little of it was there. Damien flicked his eyes over to her, trying to sneak a look at her, but immediately looked away when he saw her staring. Her frown deepened and she passed Solona's bed, crossing it to crouch beside the boy.

"Can I see it?" she asked, extending a hand.

He hesitated, but took the necklace off and gave it to her. He looked away again, absolutely embarrassed now, as she turned it over in her hand. It was a bronze symbol of Andraste, a necklace given to sisters and brothers of the Chantry when they took their vows. It was a symbol of faith, of being bound to the Maker, and was one of the holiest things common people could come in contact with.

"I...I was praying for her," he murmured. "She was having nightmares."

Leliana smiled and looked back to him. "Did one of the sisters give you this?"

Damien nodded solemnly. "She told me the Maker loves all of His children, mage or not. She...she also told me that faith is the one thing that can't be taken from us." His voice cracked. "She said people are more likely to go to war over religion than a king."

What kind of teenage boy wasn't embarrassed to be like this in front of someone? He was shaking, positively terrified, and while Leliana liked to think she was better at keeping herself under control, she knew it wouldn't take much to reduce any of them to moments like these.

"People also fight harder when they can see what they're fighting for," she replied. "Men can see the work of the Maker in everything, but a king can only be seen when he's standing before you. Nothing man makes lasts quite like the Maker's work."

"Is that why you're here?" She frowned, so he continued with, "Because you can see?"

Leliana almost laughed. It sounded so ridiculous, but he needed reassurance. "I'm here because it's my job to protect you from templars. I'm here because they're failing to do their jobs." He nodded again. "Do you know what Seekers do? Who they are?" He shook his head that time. "Seekers... We report directly to the Divine. She and the Lord Seeker want to protect you, too. That's why I'm here."

"Because my friends are being kidnapped and forced to blood magic," he said carefully.

"Yes, because good mages and good templars are being used." Damien frowned, sitting up. "The Antivan Jasper and I talked to, he said this is bigger than Ferelden, that Ferelden is just a test. The people in charge of this want to spread across Thedas and destroy the Circle."

"That wouldn't be so bad."

It wouldn't, she thought. Mages could do with some freedom. She didn't even like the Circle, but after the last week and a half, she was starting to understand why it was a necessary evil. "They're not going to stop at the Circle, Damien."

"What do you mean?"

"They're destroying the Circle first so the mages inside have the chance to join them," she said. "They're going to use you to destroy the Chantry itself. And when the Chantry is gone and the Divine dead, there will be no one to stop anyone from using blood magic. They think freedom will corrupt you...and they might be right." He started to protest, but she held up a hand. "They're using binding rituals on _people._ Binding rituals are for spirits and demons. They've convinced a large number of Ferelden's templars to take their side and defect. They've managed to get mages out of the Circle and convince them that blood magic was the way to go."

"You mean they're making an army of slaves."

She nodded sadly. "And there's no way to free them but death."

Silence lapsed over them as the weight of the mission crashed down on Damien. He wasn't even part of this, but he followed Solona's lead and they decided to stay. Leliana didn't want to drag Jasper or Aedan into this, and they had experience with this sort of thing; Solona and Damien...they were another matter altogether. Neither of them knew how to use a sword, neither of them could ride, and neither of them had ever spent much time on the road, though that would probably be the easiest problem to fix. And to make it worse, they were both susceptible to corruption by any mage they met.

Then again...Leliana was the only one that was theoretically immune to that. At this point, she wouldn't be surprised to find out the cult had a way of forcing a demon on her too.

"How are we going to win?"

She blinked, drew herself out of her thoughts, and sighed with a head shake. "I don't know."

"There's five of us, maybe six with Cullen, and there's an _army_ of heretical templars and mages," he said. "It's hopeless; we can't win."

"There is always hope," Leliana said, taking his hand. She pressed the amulet into his palm and gave him a reassuring smile. "The Maker protects His children, all of them. I'd like to think that He'll watch over us in the coming days." Damien's smile was small, but genuine, and Leliana was glad to see it. "Keep your faith close. Some days, that'll be all you have, and it'll feel like the world."

* * *

She found herself standing in Highever's version of a rookery, writing down a plea for help to Liam, the Lord Seeker, anyone who might ever see it. Her hand was shaking, but she ignored it, writing furiously. When it was finished, she read it over and frowned.

 _Recruits compromised. Three killed by mages and renegade templars, possibly ordered by Leon. Jasper is safe; everyone else is an enemy. Can't return to Circle, searching for place to hide. Send aid immediately. Threat is greater than originally thought. —Leliana_

She thought there should be something else, but she couldn't think of anything to add. That summed up just about everything she was willing to put in writing. All she had to do was send it back to Orlais and pray that whatever help was sent could get to them quickly enough.

After rolling up the small slip of paper, Leliana held out an arm and one of the birds perched there, head cocked to the side inquisitively. It squawked once, ruffling its wings, and waited almost impatiently for her to tuck the message into its pack. Once that was over with, she walked out onto the balcony, whispered a couple of words, and sent it off. She watched the raven go until she couldn't see it any longer, at which point she turned and went to make her way back down to their quarters for the evening. Leliana was halfway through climbing down the ladder when she heard voices on the stairs. _Orlesian_ voices, voices she recognized.

Jacques, Kent—an Orlesian-born Nevarran. Both close to Leon. And if their suspicions about him were right—Leliana seriously hoped they weren't, though she acted like they were—these two would be enemies.

She couldn't hear what was being said, but she was sure she didn't want to be out in the open when they came through the door. Spinning frantically, she ducked behind the only suitable hiding spot. A couple of crates and barrels, filled with bird seed and sacks of it. She just hoped they didn't look for people first.

The door swung open quietly, shielding the stacks from both recruits' view. They stepped into the room, clearly trying to be quiet about it, but finding difficulty with their armor. She was, unfortunately, less than a foot away from them with the placement of the door, and she had to hold her breath for fear of being heard. While the birds above were noisy enough she couldn't even hear her own breathing, she didn't want to risk it with these two.

"...said she was up here." Kent, lacking his Orlesian accent and not even having a name to prove of his heritage.

"You trust these guards? She's working with one of their lords." Jacques. It never sounded right when he spoke anything _but_ Orlesian; his accent was thicker than her own. "Bet my ass they lied to us."

"Let's check first."

 _They already know we're here._ She squeezed her eyes shut. _Might as well keep them from following as best as I can._

That required her to get up the courage to attack people she thought of as friends. But by the time she had steeled herself to do just that, they'd ascended the ladder and were moving around above her. It wouldn't be hard to take off and attempt to sneak everyone out safely, presuming they weren't out on the balcony.

After a deep breath, she hopped a crate, slid past the door, and slammed it shut behind her. She shoved the lock closed, heard shouting, and bolted before they could figure out what was going on. And as she ran, she tried thinking of a place to go, but the only place that crossed her mind was the one place she didn't want to head to.

Denerim.


	18. Chapter 18

Their faces connected in the most painful way possible. Forehead to forehead, nose to nose, and all with the force Leliana had picked up as she ran. Aedan staggered back into the wall, groaning, and she fell back to the ground. The force of the impact sent her ears ringing, both from colliding with him and her head snapping off the cobblestones. _Never again,_ she grumbled.

"What the hell is your problem?"

Leliana struggled to her feet, swaying slightly, and held a hand to her head. That was going to smart. She winced when her fingers prodded the sore spot. It took her a few seconds to regain her wits and be able to look at Aedan without seeing him spin, but as soon as she did, she tackled him. They fell into a small side passage, Aedan muttering irritated curses (he still wasn't happy with her apparently) and Leliana turning to see where her pursuers went. Both of them sprinted past a few breaths later, not even pausing as they ran.

Aedan started to say something, but she held up a hand to silence him. A step out of their hiding place, and she realized they weren't as clear as she thought they were. An arm locked around her throat, dragging her into the open, and threw her to the ground. She leapt to her feet the same instant and rammed his midsection, knocking them both into a wall. He recovered first, pinned her in place by the throat, and drew his dagger.

Dalton.

"Leliana?" He let go of her instantly, stepping back in shock, and threw his dagger to the side in disgust. She fell to her knees, coughing. "What in the Maker's name are you doing here? Leon—"

"Is he here?"

"What?"

"Is Leon here?"

Dalton shook his head. "No, he's still at the tower with Edmund, but they're going to follow when Kent says it's safe to." She swore, shoving Aedan off when he tried to help her up. The templar had a sword in his hand, aimed cautiously at the other Seeker, but he didn't make any move to attack the man. "What the hell are you doing here? You're supposed to be dead!"

"What are _you_ doing here?" she retorted.

"Leon sent us to make sure that kid got here safely. The templar? I can't remember his name."

"Cullen," Aedan snapped.

Dalton didn't seem to notice the venom in his voice, or he didn't care. "He said there was a chance Jasper had betrayed us and gotten you killed. He had proof, Leliana! One of the mages went rogue a few days ago and we found this letter, and—"

"Calm down. I don't understand what's going on."

"Jasper betrayed us!" he exclaimed. "He's planning to kill—"

She shook her head. "No, no, no, no, no. No. Jasper hasn't done anything. He was captured a few days ago, but Aedan and I freed him."

Dalton's eyes widened and he took a few steps back. "He's gotten you in on it, hasn't he? You've betrayed us too!"

He started shouting for Kent and Jacques despite Leliana trying to silence him. Regardless of Dalton being innocent, the other two were definitely in on it. They'd chased her halfway around the castle, stopping every once in a while to lob combustion grenades at her head. Luckily for the guards, this wing of the keep seemed to be deserted, left to those who needed it and the birds. Unfortunately for Aedan and Leliana, that meant they were alone with three Seeker recruits trying to kill them.

Kent came around the corner first, greatsword in hand, and a rather disturbing smile plastered to his face. That definitely _wasn't_ the man Leliana knew. Jacques followed a moment later, but his weapons were sheathed and his shield was on his back.

"Please tell me you have something stuffed up that sleeve of yours," Aedan whispered.

"Uh...no," she replied.

"Shit." His hand went for hers, holding her firmly in place even when she tried to pull free. "When I say to, follow me."

She didn't reply; she was preoccupied watching Kent and Jacques approach, keeping her muscles tensed. Leliana didn't hate anything more than being cornered by people she thought of as friends. The only one standing here that she might be willing to kill was Kent, but that was only because he wasn't himself. He was either under the control of some mage, or he really was just this creepy and willing to turn on her and Jasper for Leon.

"You've been a busy little woman, haven't you?" Kent took a few steps closer, twirling the large blade lazily. "We know you killed one of our men, Leliana. The Antivan?" She frowned, shifting when Aedan took a few steps to the side to keep an eye on Dalton. "You can't kill a slave without telling us."

"What are you talking about?"

So Jacques didn't know either.

"Quiet," Kent snapped. The Orlesian put up his hands in surrender, looking at his feet. Kent returned his attention to Leliana, still smirking, and she wondered how willing Dalton and Jacques would be to kill her. She didn't imagine it would take much for Kent to convince them to kill Aedan. He was a stranger to them after all, but they knew her, and she suspected that was all that was keeping Kent from attacking; he didn't have Dalton or Jacques' support. She could use that to her advantage.

"You haven't told them, have you?"

"Told us what?" Dalton. He sounded like he was willing to believe anything just to get this over with. A quick glance to Jacques told her he was just as confused as Dalton sounded.

Kent frowned. "Told them of Jasper's betrayal? How he would kill or turn you against us the moment he had the chance?"

She scoffed. "That's the exact opposite of what happened, and we both know it."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Three days ago, Jasper was taken by a group of blood mages and locked away for transport. He was going to be taken to one of the cult's camps for interrogation, but we intervened. We found several templars and two mages who'd been taken as well as Jasper, and upon their release, Aedan and Jasper figured out an extremely important little piece of the puzzle."

His frown deepened. "What are you—"

"The mages knew somethingo about me only Leon would know," she said. "Do you remember that time last year where I wasn't myself? I think you were the one who actually made the comparison between how I was acting and one of the Tranquil."

"What are you getting at?"

"My training was advanced. Liam put me through the Vigil earlier than the rest of you and I was made a Seeker. I told Leon, Jasper, and Armand, and we _all_ know the latter two wouldn't give that up to anyone."

"So what?"

"One of the mages knew about it," she finished. "He knew about me. _Leon_ betrayed us, not Jasper, not me, not Armand, not anyone else. Leon."

Jacques glanced between Leliana and Kent, nervous and hesitant. "Do you have any concrete evidence to back that up?"

Kent laughed in disbelief. "You actually believe her?"

"Well...it makes sense," Jacques said. "Leon was always jealous of her, and if he found out she was promoted, but he wasn't..."

"Imbecile!" He spun on Jacques, raising his sword above his head to swing. "She's grasping at straws! Leon showed us that letter! Jasper's turned her against us!"

"Seekers are immune to mind control!" she exclaimed. "Even if he tried, he couldn't—"

"Liar!"

In the blink of an eye, Kent's sword came around in an arc, and cut straight through Jacques' throat. Several seconds passed before the body slumped to its knees, head falling to the ground, and fell to the side. His blood squirted from his sliced jugular onto Kent's boots and the stones, pooling in the cracks and running down the ramp.

Leliana couldn't believe her eyes. She'd seen her fair share of combat, seen plenty of people killed, and killed plenty of people herself, but it still awed her every time she saw someone she knew dead. Every death reminded her how easy it was for someone to die, and this time was no exception. One minute Jacques was there, so close to realizing the truth, and the next, he was gone, head separated from his body.

"You killed him! What in the Maker's name is wrong with you?!"

"He was going to betray us!"

"He was still one of us! You could've—"

"The penalty for betrayal is death!" Kent shouted. He turned back to the three of them, now all focused on his bloodied sword, as he stalked towards Aedan and Leliana. He was close enough within three steps, brought his sword over his shoulder, and swung. The sword was broad enough to cleave straight through her and into Aedan, and he _almost_ got to finish the attack. _Almost._

But instead, Dalton had leapt between them and the sword. It went through his chest, killing him instantly, but Kent didn't blink. He kept the momentum and followed through with the rest of the swing, cutting into Aedan's shoulder before he could defend himself. Leliana reacted the moment she realized Kent wasn't going to stop, lunging for his waist, and knocked him down before he could finish off Aedan as well. The two rolled down the incline, Kent shoving his foot between them to launch her off his chest.

"Leliana!" Her head snapped around at Aedan's warning, catching sight of the recruit as he went at her. He reached, but she kicked for his chest, and knocked him back, allowing Aedan to grab her by the shoulder and pull her upright. "This way!"

As he led her away, Leliana couldn't help but look back. Kent was working his way to his feet, furious, but she couldn't see Dalton or Jacques. They were gone, and as of that moment, she could count the number of them left on one hand. Her. Jasper. Kent. Edmund. Leon. For a half a second, she wondered if this was just a tactic the mages were using to eliminate the lot of them. What if they had interrogated Armand and weasled her being a Seeker out of him, and then figured out a way to make her believe Leon had turned on them? What if Kent was the one leaking information and not Leon? What if _he_ planted the note on that mage's body so the others would think _they_ were the traitors?

The idea of it...she hoped beyond hope that it was true. Seeing Dalton and Jacques die...it hurt her more than she was willing to admit. She didn't think she'd be capable of killing Leon or Edmund, but Kent... Kent was another matter altogether.

She looked back to Aedan as he slowed to a jog, then a walk, and then stopped. His arm was gushing a ridiculous amount of blood, and from where she was standing, it looked bad. Horrible, even. The sword had cleaved straight through his shoulder guard, bending the metal inwards, and puncturing his skin.

He was staring at it too, doing his best to angle his arm so he could see it better. Once his eyes flicked up and caught her looking, he gave a pained smirk. "It's not as bad as it looks, I swear. I can't even feel it."

"Is there somewhere nearby we can hide?"

Aedan made a thoughtful expression before nodding. "Yes, this way. It's not far." He took off down another side path, ducking into a door concealed behind a stack of crates. Leliana followed and locked the door as quietly as she could. "Do you think he'll keep looking for us?"

"If he's smart, no," she said. "And he is. He won't take me on unless he has the numbers to overwhelm. And with you here, wounded or not, I can promise you he'll run back to the Circle before even remotely thinking of chasing us." She looked around the room, spotted a suitable place, and gestured for him to go sit on one of the low crates; he'd led her into a storage room, one that seemed to be forgotten. Not that she minded, of course. If it looked disused, then there was an even lower chance Kent would look for them there.

Once he finally sat, she walked up beside him, inspecting his wound. "I'm fine, Leliana," he insisted. She ignored him and lifted his arm as high as she dared. He winced, she gave him a look that made him chuckle nervously, and set to work unstrapping the ruined armor. "And how do you plan on fixing this without a potion or magic?"

"I can tie it off with a strip of linen until we get back to Solona," she replied. Her hand went to the pouch on her belt, rummaging around for a clean bandage. She found one rather easily, having gone to the healer just before supper for a restock. Leliana didn't take any potions no matter how badly she wanted to; she took salves and rolls of linen, some paste for holding the bandages on, but that was it. They'd have healing spells at their disposal, and she didn't doubt Solona would know how to make potions of her own. The people of Highever needed those potions more than they did.

"You just happen to carry linen with you everywhere, but no weapon?"

"Medical supplies are often more useful than a weapon in my experience."

"If you have a weapon—" She tugged gently on the plate and he groaned, bending forward in pain. "—there's no need for bandages."

"Oh really?"

Aedan hesitated, glanced at the blood still coming from his arm, and sighed in acquiescence. "Fine, have it your way." Leliana gave an indignant huff and went to work, doing her best to gingerly remove the armor from his flesh. When it didn't do anything but make his injuries worse, she sat back on her heels and stared at his arm, concentrating. She stared at the blood so hard that it looked like she was trying to will his arm to stop bleeding.

"Leliana?"

"Hmm?"

"I...I'm sorry about your friends," he said. She stiffened, started to protest, but he interrupted her. He obviously didn't want to hear anything about how _she_ was fine. He knew it was a lie as much as she knew him being fine was a lie. "You don't have to act like you're infallible with me. I know you're not."

 _Is this about that discussion we had the other day?_

"I'm fine. Really, Aedan. I promise."

He gave her a look, one so intense it made her uncomfortable. "Lying to me won't work. If you don't want to talk about it, fine, but at least be honest about it."

She sighed. "Maybe when we're safe...and have the chance for some privacy." He started to smile, but Leliana was back on her feet and tugging at the metal again. Aedan groaned, squeezing his knee hard enough that his knuckles turned white. "Sorry," she mumbled.

He let out a weak laugh. "I don't think you're getting it out that way. I can feel it in my bone."

"Of course you can. That's just fucking fantastic."

He arched a brow. "I don't think I've ever heard you curse before."

"Well, I do. Especially when things are bad, or I'm worried, or upset." He shrugged his uninjured shoulder and looked away. "I still need to stop the bleeding. Otherwise, you'll bleed out."

"Nah," he said, shaking his head. "The armor is keeping the two smaller cuts from bleeding as bad as they could. The sword didn't get that far; it's pretty shallow. Stick a salve on it and I'll be fine until we get back to the others."

"No."

"Wait, what are you—"

Leliana gave a sharp yank, pulled it free. Aedan bit into his hand to stifle his scream, and for a moment, Leliana debated about making a comment that he should be glad he had his gauntlet on, but decided it would be wiser to focus on wrapping up his wounds. The glare he shot her was priceless; behind the mask of irritation, she could see just how grateful he truly was. Sure, he was definitely pissed, but he was grateful.

Or she was just telling herself that so she didn't feel like a complete ass for causing him more pain. Maybe both?

"Hold that," she ordered, tapping her index finger on the bandage. While he did so, Leliana produced the sticky paste and slapped a fingernail-size glob on both corners. She blew on it a couple of times to accelerate the drying, and stood, a satisfied smirk on her face. "How do you feel?"

"Like you forgot to put a salve on the gash."

"Solona is within walking distance."

"Oh shut up."

"Does the Chantry train you to be complainers, or is that exclusively something you do?"

"Cullen is actually worse," he retorted defensively.

"Maker's breath." She rolled her eyes, biting her tongue to keep the smirk off her face, and headed back to the door. Aedan followed, scooping up his sword from where he had set it when they had first entered the room. While she didn't doubt Kent was already as far away as he could possibly be, Leliana still leant out of the doorway before deciding it was safe enough. She took a cautious step onto the path. Nothing. No shouting, no sword through her gut, just the sounds of her and Aedan breathing.

Like she had said before, isolated. She wondered how many people in the castle knew about this wing.

"I think it's safe," Aedan commented. He had sheathed his sword for emphasis; the familiar click of the crossguard locking into the scabbard was eerily loud. Leliana began wishing there was more noise, something she didn't think she'd ever wish for in her entire life. It was half the reason she was good at the meditation part of their training. That, and the fact that she was capable of sitting still for hours on end. Not that the reason she could be so still was for anything as peaceful as mediation. It had originally been intended for her to conceal herself in a far more practical manner than blending into a crowd, even if she was best at appearing like she belonged when she did not.

"Yes," she agreed. Aedan took a few steps ahead of her, peering around the corner for several unbearably long moments, and gave her a quick nod. He straightened, rubbed his arm from what was probably becoming an annoying itch, set off towards the rest of the keep.

"I'm assuming you have a plan? Or part of one, at the least?"

She jogged to catch up, matching his longer strides with several quicker, shorter ones. "Part of one, yes, but I don't like it."

"Care to share?"

"As much as I hate to admit it..." Leliana sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It needed cut, or to grow monumentally faster. She _hated_ it when her hair was shoulder-length. It would tickle her neck at such a size and distract her at the worst possible times. "The only option I see is going to Denerim."

He shrugged. "There are worse places to go," he presumed.

"And here I thought you'd be getting angrier over the suggestion."

"What do you mean?" Aedan asked with a frown.

"Last I checked, you were furious with my views on mages and magic in general."

"Oh. _Oh._ You mean that." He laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. "I was meaning to apologize, actually. That's why I was back here. Thought I'd come find you and get you alone." She arched a brow in a teasing manner, and after a half a second, Aedan's face started reddening. "That's not what I meant!"

"I know."

He scowled and muttered something under his breath. "I just...I didn't want to tell anyone else I was experiencing lyrium withdrawal. The mood swings? That's a good indicator of it, plus the urge to pummel everything and everyone in sight. It was why I was so...off when you...uh..." He looked away and coughed, whistling away the awkwardness. She knew what he was talking about, and while she wouldn't be ashamed where he could see it, she was definitely more than embarrassed about having a breakdown like that in front of him. "Anyway?"

"Anyway," she agreed, and he gave a sigh of relief.

"I'm not normally like that," Aedan amended. "I'm soft for a templar, but not so much as Cullen. I know where to draw the line. Still, I don't get so irritated with a disagreement on the issue."

"Have you taken lyrium recently?"

He nodded. "While you were interrogating the Antivan, I went to the Chantry and Alistair gave me several vials for the road. It should last me long enough to get to Denerim. I can get a steady supply once we settle on a good place to hide."

"Glad to hear it."

 _Sort of._

It occurred to Leliana that the Chantry used lyrium like a leash for the templars, but that made her wonder why the Seekers didn't have something similar. It wasn't that she wanted to be bound to the Chantry because of an addiction she had, but because it was just odd. Even though they reported directly to the Divine, why wasn't there some way to control the Seekers? Or maybe there was, and maybe the Chantry was just as much of a liar as she was.

Leliana wasn't sure which she preferred.


	19. Chapter 19

Solona wasn't as easy to rouse as Leliana thought. The bard had assumed the mage would get up just as easily as the rest of them would, the instant she was told to. Aedan knew better, surprisingly enough, and sat on his bed expectantly. After all, no mage spent years of their life training to be woken up at the most ungodly hours known to man. Aedan had suffered that wrath due to joining the templars so late in his years, but after a while, he had adjusted.

"What's going on?" That was Jasper, having just walked out of the small side room. His hair was dripping wet and he was running a towel over his hands, so Aedan surmised he must've just bathed. "What happened?" He was looking at the bloodied bandage around Aedan's upper arm. "Get into a lover's quarrel? I didn't realize you could be so abusive, Leli!"

Aedan pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, and Leliana's reaction wasn't very different. "Now's not the time for your jokes, Jasper."

He grinned at both of them. "Of course it is. It always is."

Leliana sighed again and massaged her temples before sitting on her own bed. Jasper was still looking for an explanation, but Aedan decided it could wait. "Where's Cullen?"

Jasper's grin broadened. "We took baths in shifts. Two tubs, two bathers." Aedan let out a small laugh, head shaking, and rolled his eyes. "The poor shy templar didn't know what to do with himself. It's obvious he's never been in the same room with a _real_ man before."

"You wouldn't know a real man if he slapped you across the face," Leliana retorted. She returned to shaking Solona's shoulder, but when being gentle didn't work, she jerked. The mage bolted upright, spooked, and looked around wildly until her eyes fell on Leliana. She didn't make a face, but to Aedan, her irritation was obvious. Leliana didn't either notice or care.

"What's going on?"

"I was wondering the same thing myself," Jasper commented. "Actually, I _said_ the same exact thing."

"Well, I wanted to wait for Cullen to come back out..." Leliana glanced at Aedan, brows drawn together. "I suppose it doesn't matter. Get Damien up, Jasper." The man nodded, serious enough to follow orders, and she jabbed a thumb in Aedan's direction. "He needs healed."

"I'm going to assume that's my job," Solona said. Leliana didn't respond, but sat and visibly tried to collect herself. Aedan _knew_ she wasn't being honest with him. He decided she was too good at compartmentalizing for him to be able to get much of anything out of her when she wasn't willing to specifically tell him. He gave a mental shrug and flicked his eyes over to Solona, watching her carefully as she sat next to him. "Fix your issue?"

He frowned. "What?"

"I'm going to take that as a yes," she replied. Before he could ask what she meant, Solona was already pulling the linen apart, brows furrowed in concentration. He'd finally stopped bleeding just after they left the storage room, but the blood loss still managed to take its toll on him; his skin was a sickly pale, and just walking here had exhausted him. If Leliana wanted to leave soon, Aedan thought he might drop dead.

"Mmh." Damien sat upright at Jasper's urging, rubbing his eyes. They roamed over the room lazily, still covered in that sleepy glaze, and landed on Aedan's arm, narrowing as the world came into perspective for him. "Something happen?"

Leliana sighed for the third time...if Aedan was counting correctly. He wasn't entirely sure. The world wasn't as in such good perspective for him as it probably was for Damien. "Aedan and I were attacked, yes. I'd just sent word to the Lord Seeker about our situation when I heard Jacques and Kent coming upstairs. They were hunting me, but I managed to get out of the aviary before they could catch me."

"Jacques and Kent are here?" Jasper's eyes were wide with horror and anger, a mixture of emotions Aedan's addled mind didn't understand. Even with Solona's quick healing, it would take some time for him to regain all of his functioning. He recalled thinking of that earlier in the day, just when he ran into Cullen. Unfortunately, it wasn't due to something as easy as lyrium withdrawal. This time it was blood loss.

 _I'm just not having a good day._

He swayed slightly, caught by the irritated mage beside him, and shoved sideways so he flopped rather pathetically on the bed. Leliana was staring at him, a lone brow arched in half amusement, half pity. Her mouth was moving, but he couldn't hear the words. Or perhaps he could, and just didn't care enough to decipher them. He wasn't sure. Not that he exactly cared. Right now, now being the agonizingly long seconds that felt like hours, the loss of blood was catching up with him. The adrenaline rush was long gone, leaving him to the uncomfortable half-beat of his heart.

Each breath took a painfully large amount of time, and none of them were capable of filling his lungs to capacity. His chest ached. His head throbbed in time with his weakened heartbeat. Whatever brainpower he had left told him he was stupid to lie to Leliana.

 _"It's shallow. I'll be perfectly fine."_

"Remind me how shallow that cut was."

Was that her? He didn't know. The voice sounded familiar and sweet, something too...off for a Fereldan. Everyone in the group was Fereldan except her. Or...he didn't know that, either. He thought Jasper was Fereldan, but couldn't remember for the life of him. Was Solona even Fereldan? He always doubted it...or was he just beginning to doubt it now, when his mind could barely remember the name it owned?

It had to have been Leliana. No one else spoke to him like that. Like...what? She didn't treat him differently than the others... If anyone, she treated Damien differently, like he was someone to be protected and guarded, someone far too innocent for the situation they were in. Aedan had no clue where that realization came from, but he knew, somehow, that he agreed with it. Damien didn't deserve to be part of this mess. None of them did, not even the three that had volunteered to come here.

He couldn't remember who he came to Highever with. As soon as he tried to, their names and faces slipped his mind. It made him panic, let the horrible realization that he could be dying finally reach him. That only made him panic more and he felt his body start thrashing.

Something touched what he thought was the side of his face. It was brief, warm. A sound came with it, soothing, like a voice. He calmed almost instantly, and the presence left. He felt pathetic for wishing whatever that was would return, foolishly debating about having another fit so it would. Instead, his mind summoned whatever dignity he had left, and he remained still.

But keeping still took an enormous amount of effort. He barely counted five pained breaths before he passed out.

* * *

When he awoke, his life was the same as he had left it. Confused, wounded, and disoriented. Whatever he saw made no sense, and what little of it did, it focused mainly on a flash of red every now and again. It was familiar and he trusted the color, and got worried when it left. But when it did, he found he was too exhausted to care, and fell asleep again. This happened several times until his eyes opened once, and he understood that the ceiling was a ceiling.

It felt like a first. Everything felt like a first. The blink, the sore groan that only worsened his soreness, the pounding in his head, the breathing. It felt new and raw, and it made his head hurt more.

That foolish action every injured person goes through, that immediate urge to sit up and look around, overcame him like a tidal wave. He did attempt to sit, but a hand caught his chest about halfway through and pushed him back down on the bed. He traced the length of the arm back to a familiar face, though it wasn't as bright as it typically was.

Leliana looked like she'd spent several days without sleep. Maybe she had on his account, and he instantly felt guilty.

But then he backtracked, noticed he could put a name to the flashes of red he had focused so dearly on in his fading consciousness, and the feeling of guilt was gone as quickly as it came.

"You need to rest." Soft. Caring. Definitely not the Leliana he knew, but definitely the voice he had heard through the whole ordeal. He wasn't even sure what had happened at that point, though the root of his pain seemed to come from his upper arm. It came to him in flashes, the wound, the pain, being healed by Solona... He thought he'd lost blood, which he indefinitely had, but what he had just experienced...that wasn't blood loss.

He opened his mouth, attempting to ask just what exactly had happened to him, but no words came to mind. All he did was cough, a painful hack that left his throat feeling like a dagger had been shoved down to his stomach. A warmth in his side he didn't realize was there shifted, and it was gone in an instant. It took him a second to comprehend that Leliana had been laying beside him; all that did was make him choke on his air and start coughing all over again.

She returned a few minutes later, sitting in the same place she'd been laying a moment before, and helped him sit up. Aedan did _not_ like having to be helped do something so simple.

"I want you to know I'm real this time." He'd have laughed had he been able to, and if he wasn't so embarrassed and ashamed. The need for her help made him feel pathetic and weak; it made him want to fall unconscious once again. And at the sight of the water-filled cup, he realized he'd need help drinking that.

Aedan wanted nothing more than to crawl into a hole and die.

"We'll take it slow, all right? Let me know if you need a break." Aedan was glad he could manage to nod. It earned him a smile and he felt a tad bit stronger. "Squeeze my hand if you want me to stop."

She took his hand in hers, letting them sit on her knee, and put the glass to his lips before he could fully comprehend that she actually did that. Wasn't she just trying to pull her hand from his earlier? Aedan wasn't sure what to think, but it made him feel somewhat better. He flexed his fingers, rolled his knuckles, while she helped him swallow several mouthfuls of the water. When he needed a breather, he was happy to find his muscles respond to their command. Leliana pulled away, frowning slightly, and raised an inquisitive brow.

"How do you feel?"

His throat felt better, immensely better, after getting some water down it. He still felt like shit, and his throat was still sore, but it hurt less than the rest of him did. "Horrible."

She smiled faintly. "I'm glad to hear your voice again." Aedan gave her a sideways glance, noting the brief moment of panic that crossed her features, but neither said a word on it. "Solona didn't think you'd make it."

"What happened?"

"Kent's sword was poisoned," she explained. Her mouth twisted up in a sneer as she spoke, and for a moment, Aedan was confused. He didn't feel like he'd been poisoned. Sure, his arm had hurt before Leliana had done the little she could, but it never felt like poison. There'd been plenty of time between the initial reaction and the wounding itself, but it hadn't kicked in until they'd returned to the group's allotted room.

"That doesn't make sense," Aedan said. "How could—"

"I thought the same thing you probably are." His brows rose, feeling for more information, and she obliged. "It hit pretty hard after I removed the plate from your arm. Do you remember the walk back to the others?"

He nodded. "It was exhausting."

"We only went a couple hundred feet, Aedan. And we _walked._ " Leliana sighed and ran both hands down her face, hiding from him. Her voice was muffled when she spoke. "You said you could feel it digging into your bone and I never thought his sword might've been poisoned. If I'd just..." She groaned in frustration. "If I'd just left it alone like you'd suggested, the poison never would've been able to get into your system."

He frowned. "That doesn't make sense, either."

"Yes it does!" She bolted upright at the outburst, fixing him with two watery eyes. She was...she was crying? He couldn't believe it. "The armor was cutting off the blood flow to the lower half of your arm and keeping the poison from spreading to your heart. When I took it out, the blood began flowing again, and when I bound the wound, it kept the blood from escaping. Solona would've caught the poison when she'd healed you if I hadn't done anything. It's my fault you're like this."

His mouth opened, but no sound came out, so his jaw snapped shut. Leliana had looked away from him again, furious with herself, and his frown only deepened. "You've a nasty habit of blaming yourself for things you can't possibly control."

"But I could've—"

"You didn't know his sword was poisoned," Aedan said flatly. "You did what anyone else would've done."

"That poison could've killed you!"

"But it didn't!" he retorted. "Do I look dead to you?"

She glanced at him over her shoulder, but looked away just as quickly. "It doesn't matter. It's my fault. I almost got you killed."

"Leliana, I would've bled out had you not done that. Like it or not, you saved my life."

"You still could have died, Aedan!"

"And I'm not! I'm alive, thank the Maker, and I'm alive because you kept my wounds from bleeding. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you can't survive bleeding out. Poison is another thing altogether. I had a better chance at living with the poison than with blood seeping out of my arm every few seconds."

She let out a shaky breath and shook her head. "You don't get it. I can't lose someone else. Not because of my own stupidity."

"What do you mean?"

"I lost Armand because I didn't think he'd need someone to watch his back. I lost Alice. I lost Luke. Jacques and Dalton. They're all gone because of my inability to act. If I'd done something, they'd still be here. If Leon wasn't...if I hadn't let him take charge, they might still be alive."

"But you'll never know that," he said. "They're gone, Leliana. People die. You know that." He hesitated, but reached forward and took ahold of her hand. She didn't pull away this time. "There's nothing you can do but hope their sacrifice won't be in vain."

"I don't even know where to begin," she muttered. "How in the Maker's name are we supposed to stop this?"

He gave an overdramatic sigh. "See, this is one of those times we need Jasper's jokes. I'm not as good at it as he is."

Leliana let out a weak laugh and looked at him over her shoulder. He did his best to put on an encouraging smile, but he didn't think it was very convincing. Truth be told, he didn't believe a word he said. He had a knack for telling lies such as those, for inspiring people. Aedan wasn't nearly as optimistic as he pretended to be; if anything, he expected they'd all end up dead at some point down the road. To him, this was just as hopeless as it was for her. He didn't know what to do, let alone have any of the knowledge to figure out any solutions. All he could do was be there when he was needed, and he was perfectly fine with it, but he wished he could do more. He wanted to believe the things he said. He wanted to make them true, if only so she wouldn't be so upset all the time.

He doubted the others knew what was really going on inside that head of hers. He doubted that he even knew, but he suspected he had a better idea than they did. She relaxed around him, and he relaxed around her. He wasn't embarrassed about looking weak; be was embarrassed about looking weak around her.

He swore to himself before giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Where are the others?"

"That doesn't matter."

Aedan did a double take. "It...what?"

She silenced him, pressed her lips to his cheek, and said, "You need to rest. I'll tell you in the morning."

And with that, she left, taking all of Aedan's arguments and his ability to think right out the door with her.


	20. Chapter 20

He didn't want to leave. No, he couldn't even express how much he wanted to stay. While he understood the reasoning behind sticking with the two mages and the youngest templar, that didn't mean he had to like it.

And Jasper did not like it. He understood the reasoning; get somewhere safe while Aedan recovers, but he hated it. He hated the idea of leaving Leliana behind to fend for herself. And on top of being alone, she had to guard a templar Jasper couldn't care less about. Yes, they were friends, but Aedan was an expendable templar, and Leliana was a Seeker. She was more valuable to him, to the rest of them, alive than dead. Aedan wore out his usefulness when they decided it was time to get out of Highever.

He pretended to be perfectly fine. After all, he was supposed to be a Seeker. He had to act like he was tough. Well, he _was_ tough, but he had to put on a show for his three followers. If they didn't believe in him, what use was he anyway? All he had to do was get them to Denerim and find a safe place to hide. He didn't expect that to be difficult; he had several places in mind already, despite being from Highever. Besides, just because he told the others he'd never been to Denerim didn't mean it had to be true. How many times had Leliana blatantly lied to him? Returning the favor was only fair.

A check behind him said that Damien was the only one of them who managed to stay on his horse. Jasper had only recently dismounted, legs cramping, but Solona and Cullen were both trodding alongside each other, pulling their horses by the reins. He originally thought Cullen might be able to tolerate riding longer than Solona or Damien, but he was apparently wrong.

He fell back several yards until he was pacing the youngest member of the group. Damien was sitting somewhat rigidly at this point, probably testing how his muscles would react to getting off. Just the other day, he was grasping at Jasper's belt in fright (there were, of course, a few jokes exchanged because Jasper was Jasper) and now he was riding like he'd been doing it for years.

"You're awfully good at that," Jasper commented.

The boy looked down at him, frowning. "What?"

"Riding," Jasper said. "You're pretty good at it."

Damien looked to his horse's reins, back to the sandy-haired Fereldan, and shrugged sheepishly. "It's easier when I'm not trying to stay on the horse's back."

Jasper grinned. "So this is just luck? You've no prior experience on horseback?"

"I do!" Damien exclaimed defensively. "I was from South Reach before the templars came for me. I'd been learning to ride from my father. I was good at it, too."

"Clearly," he agreed. They walked in relative silence for a while. The wind was picking up, and with how closely they were hugging the coast, Jasper could see the water pulling out. Another storm was coming. He had forgotten just how much he _hated_ the storms that ravaged Ferelden's northern coastline. Now that he had spent roughly a week there, that memory came back full-force. Thankfully, they'd reached Highever in the end of the season, meaning the storms weren't as frequent, nor as bad as they could get.

"Where are you from?"

Jasper blinked and looked up at the kid. "Curiosity got the better of you, eh? Wondering where my fine ass hails from?" He glanced back at Cullen and wiggled his brows suggestively, much to the templar's embarrassment. His ears and cheeks reddened in the span of two seconds.

"Um...yes?"

"Well, you are in for quite the story!" Jasper cleared his throat several times, patted his chest and coughed, and cleared his throat again. With a deep breath, he said, "Highever."

Damien waited, obviously expecting the man to elaborate, but Jasper just kept walking, a small smirk on his face. When he didn't, Damien sighed. Actually sighed. Jasper didn't think he heard the boy do much of anything other than mumble when spoken to. The fact that he was trying to have a conversation with him was surprising enough.

"I meant specifically."

"Oh, I know what you meant." Jasper took another deep breath, letting it out slowly. There was an audible difference in the tone behind it; he wasn't trying to be nearly as sarcastic as he had only moments before. "Let's see...I was born in Highever. Lived there most of my life. Spent some time roaming Ferelden, doing as I pleased, and ended up in Orlais. Kent, the guy who attacked Aedan and Leliana, actually found me in Val Chevin. I was drunk out of my mind, brawling with three different guys, and he helped me. I'd been kicking their asses, but don't tell him that. He likes to think he helped."

"You're his friend, then."

"After what Leliana told us the other day? I doubt it. I can't stand the thought of him," Jasper admitted. "Anyway, a couple of days went by, and I found him, dueling with one of the templars. Still don't know what he did to piss the guy off, but hey, I leapt in and saved _his_ sorry ass, and we ran for it. Somehow we ran straight into a Seeker on the road, and when he demanded what we were running from, Kent panicked. He killed him, only for us to find out a couple of weeks later that there was another Seeker watching us from the bushes. We had two options: Join and make up for the mistake, or die."

"That seems a little...weird."

Jasper laughed. "You're telling me! Leliana still thinks I'm lying when I tell her that."

Damien shifted uncomfortably, hesitating before saying, "Can't imagine why."

He gave the boy a cross look. "Was that a joke?"

"Maybe."

"You're turning out to be worse than I am." And he meant it as a compliment.

* * *

Leliana pulled up the hood of her cloak and took a step around the corner, checking for guards. Aedan was right behind her, favoring his arm despite having the wound healed, and holding his pack awkwardly as he tried to pull it over his shoulder.

"Why don't we just walk out?" he whispered.

"Because they think we left," she replied. "And...we might've stolen three of your horses."

Aedan sighed. "You owe me an explanation when we get out of here."

She nodded crisply, sinking back when a patrol went past. The rain bounced off their armor with metallic clinks, spraying on her face and clothes. They were patrolling the courtyard, had been for a good twenty minutes at the least, and made no sign of returning to the barracks. _Dedication,_ she thought. _Or loyalty._

The last guard started to pass and Leliana lunged, wrapping her arm around his throat. His hands instantly went around her forearm and he struggled, leaning forward in an attempt to throw her off. She loosened her grip in a feint, let him straighten, and then whipped, shoving him face-first into the stone wall. His helmet protected him from any permanent injuries, but he still collapsed, unconscious. His patrol turned, the remaining three of them, and stared at her in awe for all of five seconds. Two drew their weapons, one bolted to probably sound the alarm. Leliana shoved past the two with swords and raced to catch up with the third.

For a moment, she thought she'd lost him, but a flash of thunder revealed she was right on top of him. At that same moment, she collided with him in a tangle of limbs. She managed to end up being on top and punched him across the cheek before being hauled off. His friend threw her to the side carelessly, stalking after her with his sword in hand. By the time he got to her (maybe two seconds after helping the other guard up) she was already struggling to her knees. He went to kick her in the gut, but she threw herself back and rolled to her feet. Her hood had fallen down during the motion and allowed the rain to get into her eyes, something the guard didn't have to worry about with his helmet.

He squared off with her for a moment. Then he lunged with his sword, and she was ready for it. Sidestep, hit the inside of his wrist with her palm, and pivot. His sword went flying into the darkness and she grabbed him by the front of his armor, forcing him over so she could bury her knee in his stomach. Once, twice, three times, and then letting him fall to the ground. His groans of pain are never audible over the pounding of the storm.

Leliana went to return to Aedan, but there was another flash of lightning, and the third guard spotted her. Before the light could fade, her eyes snapped to the left and she saw Aedan, still standing in cover and still favoring his arm. She let out a breath of relief once she understood he was safe, then diverted her attention to the guard. He'd reached her in that brief time, swung at her neck, and the only reason she knew the sword was coming was from the faint tink of the rain striking the exposed metal to her left. She bent backwards at the waist, narrowly dodging the steel blade, and snapped forward the same instant. Her foot went into the front of his knee with enough force to knock him to both joints, then while he was staring up at her in horror, her fist connected with his jaw. He fell on his back and didn't move.

 _Not hard enough to kill,_ she told herself. She knew it wasn't; she didn't put enough force behind her arm to kill him.

Certain they were clear for the time being, she raced back to the point she last saw Aedan, relieved to find him there. "Are they dead?"

"No," she answered. "Just unconscious. Let's get out of here before someone finds them."

Aedan was barely visible even at the short distance, but she caught his nod, and beckoned for him to follow her. It was at that point Aedan decided it was time to take the lead, running past her to shove the oak door open. It revealed the eastern wing of the castle, and their ticket to freedom. Leliana hoped Aedan remembered his way around the keep well enough to make it through the downpour. Otherwise, they'd be running in circles until the rain let up and the sun came out, at which point, trying to conceal their escape would be pointless.

He didn't disappoint. They dashed past the kitchen and the larder, straight for the room at the end of the path. He went through the door, holding it open, and threw it shut once she was inside. Leliana didn't waste any time in locating the servant's passage, fishing around in her supplies until she found the signet ring. Once the massive trapdoor fell open, she tossed the metal thing back to Aedan, and dropped to the ground below. She moved to the side for him when she landed. Up above, there were some muffled sounds before he joined her, and then they were in the dark all over again.

"Torches," Aedan suggested. "Or a match." Neither of which they had.

"Search the walls. I have flint somewhere in my pack," she said. While he went to work doing that, she slung her bag to the floor and began rummaging around once again, searching valiantly for something she'd have to recognize by touch. She thought she grabbed it once, but it slipped through her fingers into the mess of things she carried. Sometimes just carrying the essentials was still too much; this was one of those times.

"Got a torch!" Aedan whispered excitedly.

Her hand brushed over something smooth and cool, probably the flint, and she snatched it up without hesitation. The same excitement Aedan was feeling transferred to her too, and when he passed it off to her, she ran her hand along its length until she found the damp cloth. She placed that end as far from her as possible, then started striking the two pieces of flint together. Sparks danced around her hands, stinging despite being drenched, and eventually, she had it lit.

Aedan whistled. "Damn, that's bright."

Leliana cringed as well. "But at least we can see."

"You got that right," he agreed. "Come on, let's get out of here."

"Sounds like a plan," she said, smirking at him faintly when his brows shot up. He had said that so many times that the words came from her before she even realized it, and the shocked look on his face was priceless. Briefly, she wondered what expression he wore yesterday after she kissed him, but dismissed the thought immediately. They had more important things to attend to.

"Carry this." She pressed the torch into his hand. "If they were using your signet ring to get into the castle, they might have men down here." His eyes widened and he gave a grim nod, mouth set in a firm line. "I'll run ahead and take care of anyone we might run into. Stay back far enough that you can only barely see me. All right?"

Another nod. "Be careful." And she scoffed.

She took a moment to string her bow, pulling the arch from its protective cloth, and gave the string an experimental pluck once she'd managed it. It gave a dull thrum in response. Satisfied, she yanked the hood of her cloak up to conceal her hair, and took off down the tunnel at a run. Aedan waited several breaths before following at a brisk walk. At the first bend, she paused to wait, eyes flicking between the hem of her dampened cloak and the passage behind. As soon as the torchlight began to illuminate her back, she leapt across the path to the other side, ducking beneath hanging cobwebs and into a rotted barrel. She crashed through it rather noisily and she cursed her own stupidity. Just as Leliana was getting up to brush herself off, she saw Aedan approaching faster in concern, went to assure him she was fine, but froze.

Were those...voices?

After a frantic motion for him to hide, she strained her ears to listen. For several minutes, the only thing she heard was her own breathing and the occasional roar of the storm above them. They weren't very far underground, maybe ten feet, and the rain was heavy enough that she had had difficulty seeing her own hands earlier. Perhaps the storm was too loud for anyone to hear the sound of her smashing the barrel.

 _They'll most likely have torches of their own, or lanterns. I'll see them before they see me._

She hoped.

Leliana decided sticking to the wall was the wisest course of action and began pacing it, keeping her right hand on the old cobblestones at all times. Highever was old, she knew, but the tunnel had to be just as ancient as the castle itself. Everywhere she touched, she felt cracks in the foundations and saw enough spiders to give some heart attacks. The fact that it had lasted so long at such a shallow depth made her wonder if the dwarves had had a part in constructing this for the Couslands. Highever had been in Ferelden as long as the dwarves; it wouldn't be surprising to find out a bunch of the stout folk had dug this before the darkspawn overran the Deep Roads. A simpler explanation was surface dwarves. Someone in Aedan's line could have hired a band and had them do this as well. She suspected the latter was probably true.

As they went, the sounds of dripping water became louder and louder, and at a cross, Leliana waited for Aedan to join her. She didn't make any attempt to conceal herself, just stood their and waited, arms folded over her chest.

When he got close enough, she could see he was frowning at the second path. It went deeper, obviously, while the one they were following kept going at a steady rate. Not to mention that one looked like it had been dug by men, while the current was constructed and clearly made to withstand just about anything nature could throw at it.

"I don't remember this," Aedan whispered.

"You've been down here before?"

He nodded. "Enough times to learn the layout like the back of my hand. If I really wanted to, I could get you lost in these tunnels forever. One branch runs all the way to Denerim in case King Cailan or Queen Anora ever need to escape the palace."

"Then how can you be sure—"

"Because they're all at the same depth. No rise, no fall. And they're all constructed, not dug by underground dwellers."

She arched a brow. "Darkspawn, perhaps?"

He shook his head. "Doubt it. We've never had a problem with darkspawn in these tunnels. Not even the giant spiders said to roam the Deep Roads."

"So...the mages," Leliana assumed.

"Most likely, but they would've had to been at work on this for ages." He held the torch farther into the side passage, trying to see where it went, but there was a bend almost ten feet down, and neither of them could see past it. "Could be for smuggling mages across Ferelden. It would guarantee templars wouldn't be able to find them."

"Then this might lead somewhere back to Lake Calenhad."

Aedan shrugged a shoulder. "Or their base of operations." He leant back with a sigh. "So what do you want to do?"

She blinked. "I want to get above ground as soon as possible." One of his brows rose; he knew her well enough to know that wasn't her full response. "But..."

"You want to see where this goes, don't you?"

Leliana sighed and took the torch from him. "Just remember you're the one who said it."

She took a deep breath, then began the careful descent into the unknown.


	21. Chapter 21

Jasper was officially sick of it now. They were supposed to join them in the city market four days ago, but neither Leliana or Aedan showed up. He'd followed his instructions to the letter — get to Denerim, find a good place to hide, and wait several (five to be precise) days. Leliana or Aedan would be waiting by the Chantry that morning.

It didn't happen. He was beginning to think something had gone wrong, and knowing Leliana, something had definitely gone wrong. She stuck to her deadlines.

He was across the market from the Chantry's walls, only a few feet from the Alienage's portcullis. He'd spent most of the day there, leaning against the wall and just watching the passerby, praying to the Maker that he'd see the familiar flash of red that belonged to his friend. Not once did he see what he was hoping for. He never even made the mistake of seeing it on someone else; it was rare for Fereldans to have red hair, and Leliana was the first he met with the color.

Jasper left that evening and returned at the crack of dawn, standing in the same place. Arms folded firmly over his chest, sword drawn and resting against his leg. The templars patrolling the area recognized the crest on its pommel and left him be, so the guards did the same. It was obvious he was waiting for someone; best to let the "Seeker" do his work in peace. But even with the lack of disturbances, nothing ever happened. Sure, he caught a couple of pickpockets applying their trade, watched one get arrested, and another killed due to attacking the guard who caught him, but he didn't see anyone he might recognize. No one approached him. No one looked at him for an awkwardly long period of time.

Until the sixth day they'd been missing, nearly three weeks after Jasper led Cullen, Solona, and Damien from Highever. It had taken them several days to make it to the city on account of having to avoid Highever's patrols, then the five days he'd been told to wait, totalling up to just under a fortnight, twelve days. It took them _seven days_ to get from Highever to Denerim. He'd expected Leliana to have gotten there before the rest of them, but they both swore to stick to the roads (from a distance) in case they were both on the move at the same time.

They didn't run into each other. He didn't see her or Aedan at the Chantry. Eighteen days later, a woman finally approached him.

Jasper had seen her the day before. She'd gone into the Chantry sometime before noon and stayed there the rest of the day. The next morning, he made it to his routine spot just as she left. The woman went in the opposite direction from him, but now, at the time he'd go get supper, she saw him. He didn't know her, but she strode towards him with a purpose, head held high.

Then he saw her sword, recognized the insignia on the pommel, and almost whooped for joy. Another Seeker, another _actual_ Seeker. Leliana's plea for aid didn't go unanswered.

But she wasn't here to receive the help they so desperately needed.

* * *

"Run!" Aedan grabbed her by the forearm and whipped the corner, dragging her right after him.

Leliana didn't need to be told twice. She was just as exhausted as he was, if not more, but she sprinted after him regardless. Not for the first time since making the mistake of entering that pit, Leliana was grateful for adrenaline rushes. It got them out of the sea of traps they'd run into almost immediately, gotten them through a fight with a particularly nasty blood mage (the euphoria of being right about the mages vanished the instant Aedan had to smite the elf) and propelled them so far underground they found darkspawn. _Giant_ darkspawn, to be exact. A horned beast as tall as the tunnel they'd entered through was high.

The first few hours down there weren't so bad. A couple slips and bruises, but nothing they couldn't handle. Resting wasn't even scary when they stopped. They both got plenty of sleep and continued on once they felt ready for it. Only an hour or two later did they come upon a large cavern filled to the brim with bookshelves. Several desks were littered around the area, a ledger on one, and after snooping through it, Aedan found out his assumption about the mage-smuggling was correct; both Solona and Damien's names were on it, though he doubted they'd been brought through yet. They were marked to go through the same day Leliana had decided it was time to get to Denerim. Both mages were long gone, and so were the three that were going to transport them.

They stayed there for the rest of the day, or what Leliana had assumed was the day. Aedan had rooted through the various drawers and crates for food and came up with enough jerky to last them several weeks. She was glad for that now, having run out of the food she stole from Highever's larder within the first few days of being down there.

Several days passed of them following the passage, stopping to refill their water skins at the steady streams of the liquid that ran down the walls. When they'd gone deep enough to find a dwarven thaig, Aedan voiced his opinion and thought it was time to turn around. Leliana, of course, agreed since they didn't have any recent proof of the mages and their supporters going down this far. They looked around, stopped to rest, and woke to a mage and one of the templar-slaves heading to the cavern. Leliana cut down the templar easily, but the mage, ending up being a firm believer in "use whatever means necessary," had started the spell to call a demon across the veil.

That was five sleep-cycles ago. Leliana had long since given up trying to keep track of how many days they spent down there, and just reverted to counting how many times they slept. She estimated they'd been underground for nearly a month, had even said to Aedan only a couple of moments ago that it was time for them to turn around and go back to the surface. Jasper would be worried sick, probably assumed they were dead.

"This is the dumbest thing you've ever talked me into!" Aedan shouted. He had a good twenty feet on her, illuminated by the magma running alongside the passageway.

"We haven't known each other that long!" she retorted.

"And I've been convinced into doing some pretty stupid things in that short amount of time!"

Well...he wasn't wrong.

They ran with everything they had, but it still wasn't enough to lose the beast chasing them. It roared and ran, beat its fists off the walls and ground, did everything in its power to slow them down, but still they managed to stay one step ahead of it.

Then Leliana rounded the corner and ran straight into Aedan, who had been standing with his hands up. A group of mages and those templars were blocking their path, several bows trained on them. The two of them were trapped.

She heard the creature roar, grabbed Aedan's arm, and dragged him to the side. It came 'round the bend seconds later, locked both beady red eyes on the mages, gave another ear-piercing roar, and charged them instead of Aedan and Leliana. It trampled the lead mage in an instant, sending pieces of him over the entire tunnel. Gore sprayed over Leliana's boots, but she held her ground. Aedan now had his arm wrapped around her waist as they watched the monster make short work of the mages and templars. He held her firmly, breath hitched in the same manner hers was.

Out of them all, Leliana thought the one that had been squished was the luckiest.

The next target it chose was thrown back against one of the walls; she heard the mage's skull crack into bone fragments. A templar was lifted off his feet while his fellows attempted to bring the thing down. That only furthered its rage, and the next thing they knew, two of their friends had been smashed together, head-first. Blood visibly sprayed over its hands, staining them and the ground red, and Leliana decided she couldn't watch any longer.

Aedan pulled them back behind the rock they were currently using for cover, wedging them between it and the wall, and sat there mutely. She had squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block out the screams of pain the mages let out; Aedan was holding her hand so tightly both their knuckles whitened. They were absolutely terrified, and even when they were both certain the creature had finished its slaughter, they remained huddled in the dark. The sounds of crunching bones still cascaded their ears and it didn't take much for Leliana's imagination to kick in. It was eating them.

She didn't dare speak, but she did her best to give Aedan the most meaningful look she could. They _had_ to get out of there.

* * *

Getting out of that nightmarish hole was a lot easier than getting in. After she managed to convince herself searching what remained of the bodies was necessary, she found a map of the tunnel system they were in. The mage that had been in possession of it was one of the lucky few to not have his corpse mangled beyond all recognition. The fact that he hadn't been eaten either was a stroke of luck for them. He had a map, several restorative potions, and what looked like correspondence between himself and the man they knew as the Runner.

What little Leliana paused to read told her they were sent down specifically to deal with a collapse and the darkspawn it let in. In big letters at the bottom, it read, "Keep an eye out for ogres. Don't waste my soldiers' lives on a fight you can't possibly win." The rest of them were coded in a cipher Leliana didn't want to waste her time figuring out until they were safe.

But with that map, returning to the Couslands' escape tunnel took them three of the sleep-cycles. _Three._ Leliana could've cried when she felt the occasional breeze from one of the many exits hit her face. There was no argument when Aedan said he'd take them to the nearest hatch, and the relief she felt when they were finally in open air was indescribable. She looked up at the sky and let out a son of disbelief, held back her tears as she inhaled the clear air. She never realized how suffocating it was underground, nor how terrifyingly dark. The first few steps were difficult from the brightness, but she didn't care.

No longer did she feel cramped. No longer did she have to worry about them running out of water. No longer did the fear of being captured weigh on her. That relief was so great she was carefree for a good ten minutes.

And then she remembered they had to go find Jasper and the others. Had they even gotten to Denerim? Were they safe? Did anything important happen?

"How far are we from Amaranthine?" Leliana demanded.

"Maybe a few hours if we run," Aedan replied. "But you're not getting me to run anywhere for a while. Why?"

"I'm stealing some horses," she grumbled.

Aedan stared at her for a few moments before breaking out in laughter, nearly falling over from how hard the laughs escaped him. Leliana watched him, confused, for only a couple of seconds before joining him. It felt good to laugh. It felt _really_ good.

Then he was hugging her, and she was hugging him, and oh, there was nothing that could ruin that moment. They were out of that hellhole and they could _breathe._

* * *

"If I hear one more word about how we've overstayed our welcome, you won't like the consequences, Knight-Commander."

The grizzled templar stood a little straighter, if that was even possible, and gave a good "hmph" before turning on his heel and marching away. Moments later, Leon heard the door to his office slam, and let out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding.

"Perhaps he's right," Edmund said.

Leon gave the man a puzzled look. "You think we should leave?"

He nodded gravely. "It's just us and Kent now, and it's probably best if we go back to tell Liam the situation is out of hand."

Leon could agree with that. The situation _was_ out of hand. Six of them dead, one Seeker gone rogue, and a whole host of problems from the local templars. None of them said anything, but Leon could see it in their eyes. They weren't wanted in the Circle anymore. He didn't blame them, though he did think they were being a bit...obvious about it. Disgusted looks in the library and hallways, ignored questions. It was becoming increasingly apparent that the templars were questioning the effectiveness of the Seekers. Now _that_ he really couldn't blame them for. Six Seekers dead and one turned against them, and what did the remaining three do? Sit around and speculate on what kind of magic could be powerful enough to take the mind of a Seeker.

"I think you should recommend an Exalted March," Edmund whispered.

He did a double take. Edmund... _what?!_ Leon couldn't believe his ears. He was no one to the Order; why would they take his recommendation on such a dire matter?

 _Because there's no stopping this the easy way._

"I can't do that," he said softly. "If the Divine acts on my word... How would I live with myself? So many people would die, Ed. I can't be the one to suggest that."

"Someone has to do it."

"Let the Divine do it of her own will," Leon snapped. "Send for Kent. I'm sick of sitting here and doing nothing." The other man frowned, folding his arms across his chest. "If they're going to turn our friend against us, then we're going to put her out of her misery, and end the sorry bastard who made the mistake of declaring war on the Chantry."

* * *

 **A/N:** **Let me apologize for the time skip and the random second addition today. This chapter was originally going to be part of chapter 20, but I didn't think it would flow correctly with such a big time skip thrown into that mess as well. I cut it out and redid most of it, added some stuff so it could be its own chapter, and this was the result. Please let me know what you think of it! I understand I glossed over what could've been several interesting chapters, and I apologize for that again, but none of them had any real...length to them (and I know this one is oddly short for my usual 3k+ chapters too). I promise Leliana will give a much better description of everything that went on to Jasper (and the new Seeker; wanna guess who she is?).**

 **Anyway, as always, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	22. Chapter 22

As it turned out, it didn't take them "a few hours" to reach Amaranthine. It took them all day and most of the night, with plenty of breaks in between, for them to reach the arling. Leliana's muscles were on fire by the time they had trotted up the hill to the city, and she assumed Aedan was in a similar position.

"You just want to go now?" Aedan asked.

She shook her head. "I want to find out what happened to Alice first."

He sighed and ran a hand through his shaggy hair. "Of course you do."

"You need a haircut."

"Shut up."

"You need to shave, too."

He groaned loudly. "I'm a man, all right? I grow hair. You do too."

"Not at the rate you do, though." Aedan rolled his eyes. As he went to reply, she interrupted with, "If you can get us into the city this early, I'll let you stay at the inn while I go to the Chantry to talk to the Revered Mother."

Aedan frowned. "Why would I do that?"

"Weren't you just complaining about being tired?"

"I meant letting you go off on your own," he said, exasperated. "That's just asking for something to happen. We either both go, or neither of us go. I'm not letting you get hurt."

Leliana almost laughed. "You realize you've been injured for Maker only knows how long, yes?"

"I don't care," he retorted, folding his arms over his chest. "The last time we went to one of the places a Seeker disappeared from, we found blood mages huddled on the coast with Jasper held captive." Now it was her turn to roll _her_ eyes.

"Aedan—"

"We are _not_ leaving each other's sight." The tone of his voice made her pull up short and blink, surprised. She'd never heard him talk like that, though she didn't think she should be so shocked. He was a templar after all, and a ranking one at that. He was used to being the authoritative one. "I lost my best friend to these idiots. I'm not losing you, too."

Her brows shot straight up. "And what does that make me?"

He blinked in confusion. "What?"

"If I remember correctly, I was the one who actually killed Marcus," she said. "But you've never given me a hard time about it. You've never even mentioned it unless I have, and now you're saying you won't lose me too. So what does that make me, Aedan? What am _I_ to you?"

"I...well..." He cleared his throat and gave an embarrassed laugh. "I don't know. A good friend?"

"Oh really?"

His cheeks turned pink and he muttered, "Can we not do this right now?"

"No, we're doing this right now."

He groaned again. "Please?"

"You're the one who decided you're not letting me out of your sight," she said.

"Leliana, please."

"Fine." She shouldered her bow and resumed marching uphill, back stiff. Not from irritation, but from being so sore. After sleeping on stone for weeks, she felt her body was in sore need of a bed. She didn't exactly care what _kind_ of bed, just a bed. Something soft and...not the ground or a floor. Would the Chantry loan them a pair of beds, or would they have to crawl to the inn and rent two rooms?

 _Better to assume the latter and be pleasantly surprised tomorrow._

Aedan jogged ahead with what little energy he had left, heading to the gate. Two guards stood watch on opposing sides, staring straight ahead and remaining deathly still while they approached. To Leliana, that was a normal sight. A good sight. It meant they were finally safe behind guards who knew what they were doing. Finally safe enough to get a good rest. The very thought of lying down to sleep made Leliana's muscles scream with anticipation. Her legs felt like they were about to fall off and keeping her eyes open became a chore. The guards had gone through an entire conversation with Aedan and opened up the gates, and she was already following him up a set of stairs before she fully realized where they were.

She groaned and rubbed her eyes with her fists. Her exhaustion hit her hard; just thinking of sleep made it worse.

"You all right back there?"

"Tired," she replied, stifling a yawn.

He shrugged. "Lucky you, the inn isn't that far. Twenty feet or so."

"Stop telling me that," Leliana interjected. "I'm going to fall asleep standing up."

Aedan laughed. "And here I thought you were going to head into the Chantry to look into Alice's death."

"Coffee," she corrected. "And we don't even know if she's dead. She disappeared from the city, just like Luke disappeared from Denerim."

"The city or the arling?"

Leliana hesitated. "Well...I actually don't know that. Leon had just said Amaranthine. I assumed he meant the city." She stared up at the building Aedan was standing beside, brows going up. "This is an inn?"

"Er...yes. Why?"

She shook her head. "Surprised, is all. Guess I've forgotten what's what up here."

He grinned and held the door for her. "Probably what happens when you head far enough underground to find the Deep Roads." The door swung shut behind them, and without even taking a look around, Leliana knew something was going to completely _fuck_ them over. Still, she kept the feeling to herself, enjoying the slight warmth coming from the fire, and handed Aedan the small bag of coins. She'd managed to keep it during their forays underground, thinking to herself how useful it would be when, _if,_ they survived long enough to return to the surface.

She was still thanking the Maker for their good fortune.

"Get us a room. Get me coffee. Do whatever you want with the rest of it."

"Just...one room?"

"Yes, sweet bloody Maker! Are you—" She bit her tongue and ran her hands down her face. "Aedan, does it really bother you?"

He blinked. "Uh...no."

"Then get one room. It's cheaper." He ruffled his own hair with a sigh, shaking his head, and made his way across the tavern's sitting room. While he went to get the things they needed, she found a table in the most suitable position she could. Despite her exhaustion, her training still demanded a flawless view of the room, and as soon as she found one, she slid her quiver off her shoulders and dropped rather ungracefully into the chair.

Holy _Maker_ she never thought sitting down could feel so good! The moment she took her weight off her feet, she felt a million pounds lighter. The pain that shot through her nerves was a good kind; it was akin to the type of removing a thorn from your hand. It hurt, but it hurt in the best way.

She slouched, allowing her forehead to touch the arms folded over the tabletop. Not for the first time, Leliana was immensely glad they had saved Solona and Damien. If it wasn't for the boy's quick thinking and Solona's healing skills, Leliana would still be limping around on a wounded leg. That would've added to a whole list of problems they'd had from the very beginning.

A hand touched her shoulder so lightly it was barely there, and despite having dozed off in the span of ten seconds, she was still able to snap upright with her usual speed. It was only Aedan, naturally, and he looked like he was trying to hold back some rather amused chuckles.

"You should get some sleep."

"So should you," she countered.

He shrugged. "I wasn't the one planning on going to the Chantry five hours before dawn."

"The...what?"

Aedan gave a half-hearted laugh, shaking his head. "Come on; we _both_ could use some sleep."

* * *

When Aedan awoke the next morning, he was sprawled out on his stomach, taking up most of the bed. He had a tendency to toss and turn, but this was ridiculous, even for him. While he went through the first few minutes of actually waking up, he moved into a sitting position, yawning and rubbing his eyes. A stretch soon followed; his muscles screamed in protest. While it sort of felt good, it mostly just left him with a dull ache at the base of his skull and in the small of his back.

His mind drifted back to the night before, but it was fuzzy. He hadn't been drunk. That much he knew. He was just so utterly exhausted that it was hard to remember anything. The most he could remember was Leliana sleeping in the same—

 _That_ woke him up instantly. His head snapped in an arc, looking for her, and sure enough, she was in the same place she had fallen asleep in. Granted, her back wasn't pressed against the wall and she was currently facing away from him, but she hadn't moved an inch otherwise. He recalled her lack of caring about them sharing a bed and flushed. _He_ cared. He cared a lot! He didn't know how Seekers dealt with such matters, but the templars frowned on even sleeping _near_ a woman. It made him reel and leap from the bed.

Aedan's mind scrambled for each jumbled memory and he let out a sigh of relief when he realized all they'd done was sleep. He wasn't sure how exhausted Leliana was, but he was still somewhat sure she'd been just as tired as he was. He doubted either of them would have even had the energy had they tried.

He sat on the edge of the bed, holding his head in his hands. For several moments, he simply breathed. His heart was racing and one of his headaches began creeping up on him, something he could usually stave off with breathing exercises. Unless it was a withdrawal headache, and those had started when they began approaching the surface. As soon as the lyrium began to get further and further away, the sooner the headaches began to appear. He didn't understand how raw lyrium staved off any of the withdrawal symptoms, but he had been glad for it. There was enough of it down there to drive anyone who stepped within a foot of it insane.

Now the only thing that would make it go away was more of the drug. What Alistair had given him was only to last until they made it to Denerim. Two vials of it. Aedan stretched each vial to a week, but that left him two weeks without, and now...now it was hitting him hard. Even if the symptoms had been put off by his proximity to so much lyrium, he'd still been without his doses of it for a fortnight at the least. It wouldn't be gradual; two weeks of built-up pain and suffering were going to hit him, and they were going to hit him hard enough that he was afraid he might die from the stress.

 _No,_ he decided. _I can do this. I_ can _do this._

He repeated that mantra so many times he lost count, but it spanned enough time that he started sweating. Cold sweats. The open window would occasionally bring in a gust of the sea air he loved so much, sending him into wicked shivering fits and making his skin turn to gooseflesh. At that point, the headache had gotten to the point that even breathing hurt. He felt like he was being suffocated and it made him _so_ angry that he wanted to kill something.

Correction. He _had_ to kill something. The nearest thing was the sleeping redhead behind him, and while he knew the only way to end his pain would be to wake her so she could get him lyrium, he didn't trust himself to move. He knew she was a light sleeper, but after everything they'd come through, who could sleep lightly? And even if she could, would she be able to defend herself so early after waking?

Aedan wouldn't risk it. Instead, he resigned himself to a long, painful morning. He remained where he was, pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes, and trying to keep it together. He rocked back and forth lightly, taking shaky breaths, and letting out small sobs of pain. If anyone would ever ask him how much it hurt, he'd tell them he'd rather die. And he would. He had never suffered something so horribly wrong and so painful that death felt like a better alternative.

The urge to strangle something was overwhelming enough that he reached out and slammed his fist into the wall. He hoped it would alleviate his irritation, but it only made it worse. Seeing Leliana sleep right through it confirmed his fears and made him furious. And yet, he remained sitting in place. Focusing on the pain seemed to help him ignore the blinding rage, but it was still there, still begging to be sated.

 _She_ did _kill Marcus..._ He snapped himself out of it and shook his head, biting his hand hard enough that he tasted blood. _He had to die. It was a mercy! Possessed! He...he... He was my best friend and she—_

He bent so far over his lap that his forehead touched his knees. He thought if he pushed hard enough, his head might burst between the headache and the pressure, and save him from the nightmare. All it did in the end was make his headache worse.

Aedan wanted to speak. He so desperately wanted to call Leliana's name and beg for her help, but when he tried, his voice didn't want to work. His mouth was dry and so was his throat, and the shivering from the cold turned into shakes. For the first time in his entire life, he understood how torture worked. Not that he didn't know what went on, but he knew what it was like. He understood how victims felt, how badly they might desire freedom, but would never find it.

The Chantry tortured their templars. If they ever tried leaving, this would happen, and they'd come crawling right back. And as soon as he realized it, he started to regret becoming a templar. Regretted every damnable minute of it, regretted hunting down all those mages, and regretted all those moments spent trying to impress someone enough for a promotion. Now he'd been promoted to Knight-Lieutenant, and he was supposed to become Knight-Captain, the one job he never wanted. He regretted that the most, regretted letting the Knight-Commander talk him into grudgingly agreeing to it.

But oddly enough, he didn't find himself regretting the events that led him there. He didn't regret meeting Leliana, or leaving the Circle for Highever, or entering that pit of hell. He didn't regret any moment of any of it, but he did hate himself for forgetting to take lyrium with him when he left the tower.

He wondered if anyone had tried to leave the templars before. He wondered if they'd gotten this far along in their withdrawal, and wondered if they could withstand it long enough for it to go away. He knew it would; the symptoms traveled in waves. He just didn't know when, and he didn't want to leave the templars anyway. He only wanted the headache to go away and take everything else with it.

Then he heard it. Leliana called out to him. He could feel her shifting around and roll off the bed, right onto her feet. She waited a few moments, probably stretching, before crouching in front of him. "What's wrong?" He groaned. Hearing her talk made his ears ring. "Aedan?"

"L-lyrium," he growled. "Headache."

Leliana gave him a sad smile. "How bad is it?"

"Very."

She brushed his sweat-soaked hair out of his face with a sigh. "This is becoming a problem." He have a half of a nod, too focused on not reaching out and striking her to say anything. "I don't think you should keep taking lyrium, Aedan."

She...what? But without lyrium, most of his powers against mages would be null and void. He'd be _completely_ useless!

"This isn't right," she continued, noticing the look that flashed across his features. "Not to mention there's no way for anyone to know how much lyrium you'd need to bring if we have to flee Denerim, too." He wanted to protest. He wanted to snap and yell at her for being an idiot, but he said nothing. Despite himself, he knew that was the withdrawal talking. He was almost entirely sure he'd agree with her if he wasn't craving it so badly.

But if he stopped taking lyrium, he'd no longer be a templar. If he wasn't a templar, what would he do?

Leliana stood, wiping the palms of her hands off on her pants. "I'll go see about getting you coffee. That should help with the headache. Then we'll see what we can do about this on a more permanent basis."

Aedan simply nodded. He watched her go, waiting for the sound of the lock clicking, but she stopped and made sure there was hardly a sound when the door closed behind her. He was beyond grateful for such a small thing, and it occurred to him how he'd have never thought of that if their positions were reversed. The impression he still got of Leliana told him she'd never do something like that, yet she had. Maybe she wasn't as big of an ass as she tried to be. Then again, Aedan hadn't really thought of her like that since they met. She proved to be her own person afterwards, just as he hoped he had. He knew what _her_ initial impression of him was like; she mocked him and Marcus on it plenty of times, but now it was nothing but friendly teasing.

She reentered the room just as soundlessly as she had left it. The scent of freshly brewed coffee filled Aedan's nostrils and he wanted to vomit. Nothing had ever smelled so repulsive, not even the hulking darkspawn they ran from only a few days ago. It wasn't even that Aedan didn't like coffee (he did) but that _anything_ could make him feel worse in that state.

"Should be glad," Leliana said, handing him two mugs. "Those were the last the barkeeper had. Hold onto those for a moment, would you?" She didn't really give him an option, instead moving to the table their gear was piled on and dragging over one of the chairs. She sat before taking one of the stone cups from him, visibly shivering.

"Too hot?" he managed.

The corner of her mouth turned up in a small smirk. "Shivering from heat?"

"Change," he corrected, and she covered her mouth with a hand to refrain from laughing.

"Yes," she agreed. "It's chilly in here." He made a face and she smiled apologetically. "Sorry. I didn't mean..." Leliana sighed and ran a hand through her hair. Aedan's brows furrowed as she stared at her coffee, and he sipped at his own. It felt good on his throat and warmed him considerably. He watched her over the rim of his cup, frown deepening when she simply stared at her hands.

"What?"

Leliana shook her head and forced a smile, but it didn't take a genius to realize it was forced. "Nothing. I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Lots of things," she admitted. "Amaranthine, Denerim, Alice...how hopeless it all seems now that we're aboveground again..."

"It's...not hopeless," he retorted. Saying that much made his head begin pounding with renewed force. Ridiculous.

"Of course it is. There's what...six of us? And that's assuming nothing's happened to them since we disappeared. They probably think we're dead and have given up." Before he could say anything else, she shook her head. "That's not what's bothering me, though."

"What is?"

She looked back down and he waited, somewhat impatiently, but waited. It was only fair; she was taking pains to make sure his headache went away and he felt better. He could at least show the dame courtesy.

"Aedan?" His eyes flicked back over to hers. "You know I don't trust you, yes?"

He frowned. "Huh?" That was news to him. He thought they were friends. "No. Since when?"

She gave him a rueful smile. "I stopped trusting you a while ago."

"Why?"

"It's stupid," she replied. He didn't think it was. If he gave her cause to mistrust him, then he assumed he deserved it. He didn't, but he believed he did. "Do you...remember what I told you when we freed Jasper and the mages and templars?"

"Of course." Something about her friend betraying her. It was hard to think with the headache, but remembering something that happened a month ago was a stretch.

"And I said I owed you more of an explanation about how I was feeling with Jacques and Dalton's deaths?"

She still owed him an explanation for what happened after he passed out. She owed him a lot of things. Regardless, he nodded.

"I wanted to apologize," Leliana finished. That took him unawares and he blinked stupidly. Why was she apologizing? "I'm not... Well, I'm not an honest person." He had that figured out a while ago. "I'd been honest for a long time, but..." She sighed and looked away. "The friend I told you about? She was the woman who trained me to be a bard." Then she launched a tale about how this Marjolaine had betrayed her, how it shattered any trust she had to offer, and how she was terrified of getting that close to someone again. She explained her reasoning behind acting like a bitch most of the time, explained that her friends' deaths were hitting her a lot harder than she was willing to admit. She told him she really wasn't as hard and bitchy as she pretended to be and told him that it wasn't his fault she didn't trust him. Then she explained _why_ she didn't trust him.

"Aedan...I don't tell people anything about myself. After what happened with Leon, I'm even more terrified of letting someone get so close to me as Marjolaine was."

"What happened with Leon?" He frowned. She couldn't mean what happened recently with Leon. It had to have happened a while ago. Fears like that didn't just happen overnight.

"He..." She swallowed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "He's made advances before, Aedan. During weeks we haven't had reasons to be competitive, he made advances."

"Really?"

"Yes," she snapped. "And I thought I might've had feelings for him, too." Hearing _that_ made Aedan feel hollow. It hurt. "Then this happened, and now...now I don't think I should ever trust anyone. I don't think I can."

"That..." He blinked and let out a whistle of disbelief. The coffee had done wonders for him while she spoke. "Wow. I don't know what to say to that." He scratched his cheek, frowning slightly at the feel of his beard, and said, "It's understandable, especially after hearing what you've been through. I just...I don't think you should let a couple bad experiences ruin your chances to be happy."

Her eyes narrowed. He'd have to choose his words carefully.

"You deserve to have friends. Not everyone is like that, Leliana."

She sighed. "I know. It's hard though."

He smiled faintly. "I understand. Sort of, anyway. I understand what you're saying."

One of her brows went up. "Do you really?"

"Um...I think so?"

"I don't think you do," Leliana said. "It figures. You're a direct person. I _hate_ spelling it out for people." He frowned _again._ How many times could this woman confuse him in one conversation? "Look, I just told you I don't trust you, but I told you all of that. I've _never_ told anyone that before. Not Armand, not Jasper, not even Leon, and like I said, I thought I had feelings for him."

 _What the hell is she getting at?_

"I don't want to trust you."

 _I got that much._

"But I do."

 _Obviously._

"I've only ever trusted one person as much as I find myself trusting you." Leliana laughed in disbelief, running a hand through her hair. "I can't believe I'm saying any of this."

"I still have no idea what you're talking about."

"I can tell." She looked away, drumming her fingers on the side of her coffee cup, and laughed again. Aedan's eyes narrowed a bit; was she...flustered?

 _The fuck is going on right now?_

"You'd think I'd have an easier time saying it. I'm supposed to be a bard." That only confused him more. He could honestly say he had no idea what she was talking about, though he assumed that last comment was more her talking to herself than to him.

"Could you, ah...tell me what you're talking about?"

"I'm _trying,_ " she said.

He smirked faintly. "I can see that. You're not doing too good a job, however."

She huffed. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"I have the utmost confidence in you," he retorted. "Even if I don't understand what could possibly be so hard to say."

"Oh, I'm sure you do," she replied. "I asked you about it yesterday." She...what? He frowned yet again (he should start counting how many times he frowns a day) and once the memory hit him, his eyes went wide. Oh. _Oh._ "Oh" was all he could say. "Aedan—"

He was never good with words. He knew he'd never be able to explain what she was asking for when they were entering Amaranthine. But he knew _exactly_ how to get his point across.

 _Fuck **everything.** I don't care anymore. _

He threw the empty mug to the side, grabbed the arm of her chair, and yanked her closer. Her eyes went wide and she yelped, surprised, but he was having none of it. And if she was saying what he thought she was saying, he didn't think she'd care.

Aedan waited less than a half a second, nearly double the time that passed between now and her saying his name. Then, trying his best not to smirk, pressed his lips to hers. It was awkward at first, leaning forward enough to reach, and he stood, pulling her upright with him. He kissed her again, and when she kissed him back, he never thought he'd been so happy in his entire life. She tasted faintly of coffee and honey (did she put honey in her coffee?) and it reminded him that he was allergic to bees. Because _that_ wasn't something weird to remember at all!

When she pulled away, she dropped back onto her own two feet and rested her head on his chest. For a few moments, they were quiet, trying to regain control of their breathing. Then Leliana said, "You need to shave."

And despite himself, despite the headache still raging at the base of his skull, he laughed.


	23. Chapter 23

With her trip to the Chantry ending up fruitless, Leliana stopped at one of the vendors across the city. She'd told Aedan at least twice that he needed to shave his beard (his face wasn't one for beards) and that he needed a haircut. He looked like a beggar. An armed, very dangerous beggar with a lyrium addiction.

After purchasing a small, one-sided blade, she returned to the inn. The Crown and Lion, or something like that. Leliana didn't stop to check the sign, opting to get back to her companion as quickly as possible. She was only gone for twenty minutes at the most, but a lot could happen in twenty minutes. Even if she didn't think anything _would_ happen, she could agree with Aedan's sentiment about staying together. Safety in numbers and all that.

The dwarf at the bar gave her a polite nod as she made her way up the steps, which she returned with a small smile. Their room was right across the landing, easily large enough for three people to stay in comfortably. It just being the two of them made it even nicer; it was a pleasant change to sleeping on cold, unforgiving stone all the time.

She knocked once. "Aedan?" They'd agreed to leave him with the one key simply for the fact that if, Maker forbid, something _did_ happen to her while she was out, he'd have the chance to escape through the window when someone came looking.

There was some shuffling around before the door swung open. Aedan had an arm across his torso and a grimace plastered to his face, but he forced a smile when he noticed the concern etched on her features. "Get anything useful?"

"Sadly, no," Leliana replied, slipping past him and into the room. He closed the door behind her and locked it. She went to the window and pulled it shut before setting her bag on the table. There was no way in hell she was telling him she had several vials of lyrium in it — she was dead serious when she told him she thought he should stop taking it.

He sighed and sat on the bed. "At least you tried."

"I suppose," she agreed. "The Revered Mother said she never saw hide nor hair of Alice even once, so I doubt she even came to the city. She must've found something on the plains."

"Perhaps the same entrance we came from?"

Leliana shook her head. "Not unless it was guarded when she found it."

"It was worth a shot."

"It was." She rummaged around in her satchel for the razor she just bought and tossed it to him. He frowned when he caught it, but once he realized what it was, he grinned. "What?"

"Does the beard bother you that much?" he asked. He was teasing, Leliana knew, but she gave him a look anyway. "And here I thought bards were experienced in matters of romance. Aren't you used to—"

"Orlesian men have mustaches at the most," she retorted. "Beards are a distinctly Fereldan thing."

"Are they now?"

"Stop it."

He laughed. "Fine. I don't like having a beard regardless of if it bothers you or not. Not like you've seen me with one before." She shrugged and hopped onto the bed after he moved, taking her pack along with her. There were still things inside that she hadn't necessarily looked at, things she found on the Antivan templar and things she found in the tunnels. Several maps, several lists, several coded messages, several names similar to "the Runner." All of them needed to be gone through extensively, and she figured now would be a good time to start on it.

She got back up and went to the table, shoving all their things onto the floor. Aedan's armor landed with a loud, metallic ring and she winced.

"Maker's breath, are you trying to deafen me?"

"I'm sorry, I can't hear you," she retorted. He watched as she pushed the table across the room, settling it beneath the wall, and climbed atop it. From her pack, she produced her replacement for her last map of Ferelden and removed the nails from the painting in front of her face. It landed on her knees, but was also pushed to the floor, and she replaced it with her map.

When that was finished, she dropped back to the floor and dumped the contents of her pack on the table. Leliana sorted through everything carefully, placing them in neat stacks and piles, and organizing them due to supposed importance. First were the maps, which were set directly in front of her, followed by the list of what she assumed to be leaders. The ledgers were left and in the corner, directly beneath her map of Ferelden, and the lists on the exact opposite end of the table. Anything else was placed wherever it made the most sense to her.

She stepped back, hands on her hips, and studied her quick renovation. A puff of breath escaped her lips as Aedan joined her. "Well, that was fast."

"Need to get through this as fast as I possibly can," she replied. She barely spared him a sideways glance before mumbling something about his beard and setting to work. The nearby desk was scavenged of all paper and writing utensils, its contents also dropped on Leliana's newest workspace. She got back up on the table carefully, taking the charcoal pencil to the laurel marker labeled "Highever." A circle was drawn around it, the general area of Jasper's disappearance marked, and the general area of the mages' cove marked. She wrote a capital "r" beside the circle with a question mark and got off again.

"What are you doing, exactly?"

Leliana took the strangest item she'd recovered yet — an amulet from the Antivan — and used a small dab of the bandage paste to stick it next to Highever. "There has to be something here."

"I can help you when—"

"No, you'll mess up my thinking process." He sighed and she gave him an apologetic smile over her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it the way it sounded."

"It's fine," he said. "Besides, templars are just armed brutes, right?"

"I still think—" She riffled through the ciphers for one she recognized. "—you should leave the order."

"And do what?"

She brought over a chair and sat at the table, using one of the quills to scribble through the message. "I don't know. There are plenty of other things that are healthier than ingesting lyrium constantly." Twisting around in the chair, she set the deciphered letter to the side. "Who knows, if we survive this, you might be able to make a case for joining the Seekers."

He scoffed. "You're joking."

"I'm not," she said. "I think you could handle it."

Aedan paused in his shaving to look at her through the mirror he was using. It was connected to a dresser and a wash basin was beneath his chest. "Leliana, half the time you've known me, I've either been injured or such a waste of space that I do more harm than good." He paused. "Based on your perspective, anyway."

"You're a good fighter."

"From what I've seen, I imagine that's not all Seekers do."

"No, but you learn," Leliana said.

He shook his head and returned to shaving. "It doesn't matter right now. This all depends on us succeeding."

It was her turn to sigh. If he wanted to believe that, then she would let him. If they did, by the Maker's grace, survive, she could try to persuade him at that time. But right now, it did neither of them any good just talking about it. She had more important things to worry about.

Leliana turned back around, picking up the message. She had the words written above the jumbled letters, beyond glad she'd been able to pick up on the pattern so easily. It was actually a pattern many bards used when writing secret messages. Take the letter you needed, advance three places in the alphabet, and use the new one instead. It was ridiculously simple, but it served the job well in other nations. Free Marchers had figured the cipher out years ago, but it was rare to find someone outside of the city-states who knew the pattern.

"I've got a transport record from the looks of it."

"What's it say?"

"Nothing important," she grumbled. It figured the mages would be smarter than using such a simple pattern on anything important. "Just talking about moving mages between Highever and Denerim. Spreading out."

"Fuck!"

Leliana leapt to her feet and bolted to the window. She threw it open, looked at the street below, and slammed the shutters again. Aedan arched a brow at her, but she shook her head. "That was literal."

Aedan's face drained of color. "Oh."

She dropped back into her chair and started sorting through the other coded messages (she had three more) to find any that might be as easy as the first. Unfortunately, the three of them were ciphers she didn't recognize, and none of them looked familiar at all. If there were similarities between one she knew and one of the ones before her, then she might've gotten through that one. But there wasn't, so she got back up and started hunting through the ledgers. She got through the first listing when Aedan pulled up a chair and joined her.

"Sure I can't help?"

Before Leliana could answer, Aedan caught sight of the coded messages and snatched them up. His brows creased together, and instead of scolding him, she simply watched. The man seemed more focused than confused. He held a hand out for her quill, which she willingly relinquished, and sat mutely as he worked. First he drew lines and connected each of the letters to their corresponding ones across the entire sheet, then flipped the decoded one over and scribbled them down in alphabetical order.

"This one starts with dear," he said, tapping the one he was using. "So let's assume this one does the same."

"Good start."

He nodded absentmindedly and wrote "dear" across the top four letters, then filled in the appropriate letter with the matching code. Any three-letter words ending with an "e," but not starting with an "a," he marked as "the" and copied down the correct letters beside the fake letter on his cheat sheet. He filled those in afterwards and sat back.

"This look like I'm getting somewhere?" Leliana scanned it, then nodded. Impressive...for a templar. That afterthought was a force of habit, something she knew she needed to stop. "You know..you're not so bad for a Seeker."

"Am I now? Thank you."

He snorted. "That came out wrong."

"So I assumed."

Aedan paused and frowned at her. "Compartmentalizing?"

"All day everyday."

He sighed. "That's not always a good thing. It—"

Leliana's head snapped around as she held a hand up. Aedan went quiet, thankfully, and Leliana got to her feet. She could've sworn she heard something. As she crouched by the door handle, intending to look through the keyhole to see what was going on outside, she heard the door beside theirs get kicked in. People yelped, several words were shouted, and there was a scream. And barely, just barely, she caught sight of some familiar armor heading into the next room.

"Get ready to go," she whispered urgently. " _Now!_ "

Aedan leapt to his feet and hurriedly threw on his armor while she tore down the map. It went into the fire, their evidence went back into her bag, and they went for the window. Aedan threw it open roughly, letting in a rush of the sea breeze while Leliana pulled her quiver and bow over her shoulders. She heard Aedan hit the ground below with a clatter, and just as she went to follow, the door was kicked open.

"Leon! They're here!" It was Kent.

Leliana froze, crouching on the windowsill, eyes narrowed on the man. His face was twisted up in a sardonic grin she didn't understand, but oh, was she tempted to jump back inside and kill him. Every fiber of her being begged her to do it.

"Leliana!"

She looked to Aedan, standing back and waiting for her to join him, and back to the door at the sound of running feet. Leon shoved his way into the room past Kent and their eyes locked. He almost looked...sorry. But whatever it was, it wasn't the look of an enemy. And when he started forward, she almost got out of the window to speak with him.

Aedan called out to her again and snapped her out of it, and she jumped to the ground. He turned and bolted out of the alleyway, headed down the large staircase they climbed only the day before. Leliana followed, jumping down the last few steps without pause. They sprinted for the gates, shoving through a crowd having come in for the day's shopping. A quick glance over her shoulder showed that Leon and his two followers, Kent and Edmund, were coming around the corner. Unfortunately, she was shoved by someone, and lost sight of them. She collided with another man, fell, and was dragged upright by the arm all at once. It was Aedan, unsurprisingly, and he pulled her along after him until she had recovered enough to run on her own.

Halfway down the hill, when she looked back again, their three pursuers were nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Nearly a week since they'd set out from Kinloch, Leon was beginning to think that looking for Leliana and Jasper was pointless. He didn't know why he thought Jasper was still alive, nor why he even remotely suspected either of them would still be in Highever. After Dalton and Jacques' deaths, it was only logical to assume they had fled for somewhere safer.

Though when Kent suggested to check Amaranthine, Leon was surprised to find out that Leliana _was_ there, and so was the templar knight she and Jasper had left with. Jasper was nowhere to be found, something Kent leapt at and used to reinforce Leliana being a traitor. Leon, reluctant as he was, believed it. Kent had been rather open about his condemnation for their friend, much to both Leon and Edmund's annoyance. Leon was keen to find some explanation other than treachery, Edmund didn't rightly care either way so long as they came up with a solution to their problem, and Kent was vocal about just hunting her down and killing her.

"Revered Mother says she remembers Leliana. Came in for some lyrium for the templar and to look for Alice." Edmund sat next to Leon with a loud thud, letting out a satisfied groan. Kent was still out scouring the market for them, but Leon knew well enough that they were long gone.

"Aedan," Leon corrected. "The teyrn's son."

"Aye," Edmund agreed. "That's the one."

He shook his head. "It doesn't make sense to me."

"What doesn't?"

"Kent keeps telling us that the mages got to her," Leon explained. "Yet I see little evidence of it. Anyone trapped under a blood mage's control has no love or capacity for caution. Do you even think she'd care about Alice's disappearance if she was enthralled by one of the mages?"

Edmund shrugged. "Seekers are supposed to be immune to mind control too. If they did manage to find a way past that, then who's to say they didn't find a way to 'loosen the leash,' so to speak?"

"There's that as well. Seekers _are_ immune to mind control." The Rivaini simply shrugged again. "I think Kent is lying to us."

"You think he's the leak?"

"He hasn't been himself in weeks," Leon said. "And now he's suddenly jumping at every opportunity to kill the one person here immune to the mages' blood magic."

Edmund laughed in disbelief. "And I think you're letting your feelings get in the way of the job."

Leom sighed. "Perhaps. There is always the chance that I'm wrong." Edmund nodded as he got to his feet. "But there's always the chance I'm right too."

"I suppose we'll find out in due time, no?"

Leon nodded as well, following the darker man down to meet Kent, who was currently marching up to them from the direction of the Crown and Lion. And oh, did he hope he was right and Edmund was wrong.


	24. Chapter 24

Seeing Leon with Kent... It made Leliana steel herself, like the world came into perspective for the first time. That wake-up call was almost as severe as the one she had after her vigil. She never thought _anything_ could impact her so thoroughly after Marjolaine's betrayal, but Maker, was she wrong. Beyond wrong.

There he was, the man she once thought of as more than a friend, helping a murderer hunt her down.

It hurt, simply put. Not because he knew. No, by now, Leliana had surmised Leon had no idea what Kent was up to, and was firm in her belief that he and Edmund were merely along for a ride Kent was controlling. Something had to be done about that, but she was still trying to figure out what that was going to be. They'd even remained on foot to (hopefully) force a confrontation with the three Seekers, but it quickly became apparent Leon was reluctant to follow.

So many mistakes. Leliana had thought they'd been on the right track with Leon being the leak, but now it was so blatantly obvious it couldn't be him that it made her feel like an idiot. Still, walking into this mess with what she had been given, she'd never have thought it could be Kent either. Kent was...he was never one to really speak out or say much. If the others had thought she was quiet, they hadn't met the Orlesian-born Nevarran. Words rarely left his lips, and yet...

Leliana couldn't stop thinking about it. It bothered her to the point that she had to stop abruptly enough that Aedan didn't even notice she was gone. He did notice, thankfully, after about another ten yards, but he looked so damn confused at her just standing there that she nearly smiled.

"What's wrong?"

She fisted the back of her hair and let her arms fall back to her sides in frustration, eyes trailing north, back to the port city. "I can't let Kent stay with them."

Aedan arched a brow. He clearly knew where that statement was going to lead them, but Leliana didn't want to drag him into it. It was a personal battle that would probably lead to bloodshed between all four of the Seekers, and it wouldn't be fair for Aedan to get stuck in the middle of it. They'd had very little fighting to go through together, and Leliana was well-aware that Aedan probably had more years divested into his combat skills, but there was just... Seekers trained far more vigorously than templars did, or the sons of teyrns. He was definitely one of the best swordsmen she'd ever met, but still...

"Well, are we going or what?"

" _I'm_ going, you're not."

He blinked, then laughed. "You're joking." When she just stared at him, Aedan frowned. "Wait, you're serious? How can you say that? I'm not a damsel in distress, Leliana. I'm—"

"You're going through lyrium withdrawal!"

"So what? That doesn't mean—"

"Those are Seekers I'm going after!" she snapped. "Maybe if—"

It was his turn to interrupt her. "Maybe if what? Maybe if _I_ was a Seeker too, you'd let me go?" Her jaw tightened. "Leliana, I can hold my own in a sparring match with you, and you're supposed to be the best in your group of lunatics. Besides, I volunteered for this shit, and I'm not about to let you run off to get yourself killed fighting some of the best warriors in Thedas. I've said it once and I'll say it again; safety in numbers."

She pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a frustrated breath. "You could get hurt."

He laughed again. It was so ridiculous that she understood why. Of _course_ he could get hurt. She could get hurt too. There wasn't a single thing they could do that didn't have the possibility of an injury involved.

"If that bothered me so much, I would've gone back to the tower after we rescued Jasper."

There was no way Aedan was going to let her go after them on her own, and the worst part was, he kept being right. Leliana had spent much of her life working by herself and had gotten so used to it that she preferred it, but by now, she'd have thought she'd be fine with another's help. It was her only legitimate reason for not wanting him to go. That, and not wanting to see him get hurt in his weakened state.

Leliana sighed. "If you're coming—" She reached into her satchel and produced one of the blue vials she retrieved that morning. "—you're going to be at your best. If we're lucky, the only one who won't walk away from this is Kent."

Aedan gave her his best cocky grin. Large, toothy. Looked about as ridiculous as her statement about getting hurt sounded. "And if we're unlucky..."

"Then only one of us will be going back to the others."

"Or neither of us."

She frowned. "Can you stop smirking at me when you're going to be serious?"

"Nope," he said. He took the vial from her, popped the cork, and knocked it back so quickly that Leliana barely had time to stifle her yawn. Too much walking, not enough rest.

She watched him closely for the first few moments, eyes narrowed as his face went through multiple expressions. "Feel better?"

Aedan drew in a deep breath and nodded. "Immensely. The lyrium should start kicking in about the same time we get back to the city."

Leliana nodded as well. "I'll have to see if I can get a new dagger somewhere. I _still_ haven't replaced the one I lost fighting those bandits." He grinned and shrugged at her, making a helpless motion. That had been the first time she'd seen him in any real fighting, no matter how brief. He'd cut the head from one of the outlaws they'd run off the road and never once seemed bothered by it. Not in the slightest. Leliana didn't want to think he'd killed so many mages that killing someone no longer bothered him.

She desperately hoped he wasn't like that.

* * *

"Leon!"

It was Kent again, probably infuriated by the other's lack of confrontation. Leon wasn't as eager as he was to get out and hunt down the two. They'd only just slipped through their grasp a few hours ago, but Kent thought it would be wiser to get them while they were on the run.

Leon wasn't so foolish. Give Leliana a chance to shoot any of them, and she just might do it. He wasn't completely positive on the theory he'd discussed with Edmund earlier, but both men were far more weary around their counterpart. Something about his bloodlust... It set off warning bells in Leon's head. If he was right, Kent would be looking for an excuse to stab him in the back, and letting Leliana get away with Aedan would've been a huge mistake.

"What is it now?" he asked, running both hands through his hair. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ed's hand drift closer to the hilt of his sword.

Kent marched across the tavern to stand before Leon, arms folded over his chest in probably the angriest pose he ever saw the man strike. He was never one to express much of anything, be it words or emotions. Now he was being so expressive that it verged on irritating. Irritating and extremely suspicious. The only time he even remotely got like this during their trip were times he thought they might be close to figuring out where Leliana had gone, and what had happened to Jasper.

"I saw him."

Leon's brows creased together. "Saw who?"

"The templar," Kent reported. "Down in the market. He was just standing there."

"Templars tend to do that," Edmund said carefully. "They're not—"

Kent shot him a dark look and Edmund's mouth snapped shut. More warning bells. Ed's hand was now clenched tightly around his sword, prepared to draw it at a moment's notice. Kent most likely noticed, but he couldn't very well respond the same way Ed could; his broadsword was strapped to his back and it would be openly hostile to even touch it.

"What do you want me to do about it?" Leon demanded. "I can't very well walk out in the middle of broad daylight and attack the man. The guards would be all over us."

"He's a traitor to the Chantry!" Kent exclaimed furiously.

"It'll be dealt with, Kent. Quietly."

"Something needs to be done about it now!"

Leon went to reply, but then it hit him. If Aedan was standing out in the open, there was a good chance Leliana would be somewhere nearby. It would be a trap to get the three of them to go out there, but if he knew her, which he did, she'd know Kent was working this alone. This could be Leon's chance to regroup with them.

"Was Leliana with him?"

Kent shook his head. That only seemed to agitate him further. "No, dammit. I searched, but I only saw the templar."

"All right." Leon grabbed his sword from its place on the table and took his shield, gesturing to the door. "Let's get to it, then." Kent nodded grimly and started off, leaving Leon with Ed in the sitting room. Ed was giving his friend a confused look, but Leon silenced whatever questions he might've thought of with a simple look. "Be on your guard. This could be a trap from either Kent or Leliana."

"Or both," Ed muttered. "Not sure which I dread the idea of more."

Leon leaned in and whispered, "At least we know Leliana's on our side."

Ed frowned. "There's still a chance they could be working together."

"Doubtful. Come on, before he thinks something's up."

* * *

The plan was simple. Or, it was supposed to be. It was simple enough when Leliana explained it to him. Now Aedan was alone and beyond confused. Then again, he was pretty good at being confused. That could always be a plus...or in his case, a minus. Being confused all the time probably wasn't a good thing.

All he had to do was stand there. Simple, right? Yes, until Leliana got into explaining everything about her assumptions and what would happen since she knew these people so well. Kent would do this, Kent would do that, Leon would go there and do something with this Edmund fellow he didn't even know.

He supposed that was why she was the Seeker and he was the templar. Call her in for a puzzle, but if you need a mage killed, that was Aedan's area of expertise.

 _Wait...did I just call myself stupid?_ He sighed and ran a hand down his face, pacing between the two buildings. Amaranthine's market wasn't nearly as lively as it was that morning; most of the merchants had closed their stalls and gone to the Chantry for the Revered Mother's sermon, as had the commoners and a good portion of the guards. This was typically the best time of the day for Amaranthine to drop everything and go to the Chantry, so it would naturally be the best time for them to get into a fight.

 _Maker, it's going to be a long day._

Aedan folded his arms over his chest and resumed pacing, eyes flicking around quite often. Leliana had told him to do so just in case Kent had people in the city. They might be watching him, and since human eyes were attracted to movement, he'd most likely see anyone if they shifted, even in the slightest.

He didn't want to know why she knew that.

It took several minutes after spotting Kent watching him from the gate for him to reappear, Leon and the man he assumed to be Edmund on his heels. Aedan kicked his shield up into his hand before sliding his arm through its bracings. By the time they reached him, he'd gotten the straps tightened and had his sword drawn. He gave it an experimental twirl, nodding to himself in satisfaction. He'd probably have to sharpen it later on; there was a good chance it was duller than shit.

Even though Kent was in the lead, Leon was the one to address him. Kent simply drew his sword. "Where's your friend, templar?"

Aedan shrugged. "You know her better than I do. Leliana does what she wants."

"True enough," Leon agreed, a faint smirk crossing his lips. "So why are you here?"

"It's a lovely day," Aedan remarked sarcastically.

"Enough stalling," Kent snarled, shoving Leon out of the way. Edmund leapt forward to try and get between them, but Kent threw him off. Both men tumbled to the ground in a heap of metal and curses, and Kent leveled his sword at Aedan's chest. "You better hope your friend is somewhere nearby."

Aedan slid into a defensive crouch, bringing his shield up. He said nothing, but he did prepare himself for a fight. Leliana was nearby, of course, but she was preoccupied hunting down any templars or mages Kent might have gone to alert before he'd gone to Leon. When Aedan had made his case to be the one here instead of her, he could see the fury flash behind her eyes. He understood the desire to avenge her friends; he'd lost friends over the years as well.

For several seconds, they only stared at each other, gauging their opponent and their skills. Aedan had a relatively poor idea of Kent's fighting style, whereas he probably knew how every templar was trained. Kent had the better armor, the typical set of Seeker armor he recognized, but it was also nearly double the weight of Aedan's chainmail. And while Kent had the longer weapon, it meant Aedan only had to get close enough to render the greatsword useless.

Then a month-old memory clicked. Leliana's friend had been killed by a greatsword. He didn't know where Kent had been sent to investigate, but he'd bet his life on Kent being willing to backtrack and kill the man himself.

"You killed Armand, didn't you?"

The corner of Kent's moutb turned up in an amused smirk. "A smart templar? That's a first."

Before Aedan could reply, the man spun in an arc and brought his sword down on his shield. Aedan shifted his feet back and caught the brunt of the force in the center, throwing his arm forward to send the weapon reeling to the side. He drove his longsword at Kent's chest, but the Seeker flicked his wrist and knocked the attack away. His greatsword fell on Aedan's shield again, this time with a deafening clang. After so many years of hearing that sound, Aedan was surprisingly unfazed, and responded with a swing of his sword. Kent blocked it easily.

They continued swapping blows, putting out feelers for the other's style, but unfortunately for the Seeker, Aedan had practically been born with a sword in his hand. Aedan picked up on his methods far sooner than Kent picked up on his and managed to get Kent back out onto the main street, battering him with blows from both his shield and his sword. It quickly became apparent that Kent had only previously wounded Aedan from his shock, not his skill. Each of Aedan's strikes were desperately blocked or parried, but never once did he falter. He had a goal set in his mind; back Kent into a wall and _finish it._

For all he'd heard about the Seekers, Aedan honestly expected better from this man. The fight was over before it really started, and he could see the terrified looks his opponent kept shooting behind his back, expecting Leon or Edmund to come to his aid.

Aedan took a step back, giving the man a breather, and successfully drew him into a trap of his own. Kent took the opportunity to use his sword like a hammer, bringing it overhead and down, smashing it into Aedan's shield. As he pushed, attempting to overwhelm the templar, Aedan flexed his grip on his sword, and threw all of his weight into pushing Kent off. The man staggered back into a building, grip on his sword slackening.

Just as Aedan went to impale him, he heard a stream of shouting, a loud bang, and running feet. While Aedan was distracted, Kent reached for his weapon. The Seeker prepared to rend head from shoulder, but when the sword started to go, another collided with his. Aedan snapped back to attention to find Leon standing between them, throwing Kent's sword to the side with a simple motion. The weight of the greatsword carried it through the air and practically disarmed its owner for him, and without hesitation, Leon kicked Kent's knee out. He fell with a scream, but before the sound could even finish, Leon had run his sword through his neck.

 _That_ was something Aedan expected from a Seeker, especially the one that rivalled Leliana's skills.

"Don't let your eyes off your target," Leon grumbled.

Aedan nodded. "Understood."

"Now where's—"

Another bang. Leliana appeared at the top of the stairs nearly thirty feet away and didn't stop, bolting down them three at a time. Aedan ran forward to meet her, shoving his sword into his scabbard as he went, with Leon on his heels. By the time the three of them ran into each other, Leliana was already down the steps with her bow in hand, panting and wide-eyed.

"Where's Kent?" She looked past the two of them, eyes landing on the body, and grimaced. "Never mind. We need to get—" One of the bangs went off and they cringed together, wincing from the noise. "We need to go!"

"What is that?"

"Just go!"

Leliana took off again, headed for the city gates, and with a confused glance shared with Leon, Aedan ran after her. Edmund had already begun to follow her, having run ahead to meet, and then pace. The two of them reached the stairs leading out of the market long before Aedan and Leon did, and just as they started up, Aedan stopped to see what they were running from. His eyes went wide.

A pride demon.

A _fucking_ pride demon.


	25. Chapter 25

If she ever thought she was more qualified to hunt mages than Aedan, she was wrong. All it took was one good look at the mage claiming to be the Runner. And that was _before_ he transformed into a pride demon. After that, Leliana didn't necessarily care if Aedan had dealt with Kent or not. At that point, it was all self-preservation and less caring about the larger scheme of things. She was more selfish than she liked to admit.

As they passed from beneath the portcullis, Leliana's eyes locked onto the protruding wall of a small home. She looked back, decided this was as good a place as any, and gestured to the road ahead. Edmund was just behind her, but he seemed to get the idea. While she crossed and used a barrel to help her scale the wall, Ed led Aedan and Leon towards the small patch of corn before turning to face their foe.

She settled in for a crouch, doing her best to remain concealed further back along the rooftop. It felt good to have a vantage point, no matter how close to the ground it was; it meant shooting someone would be far easier than it typically was. Besides, out here, Amaranthine was less prone to damage, and the others would have more room to maneuver.

One of her hands drifted back and felt for the familiar softness of an arrow's fletching. The instant she even remotely felt it beneath her fingertips, she dragged the arrow free, and slowly put it on the string of her bow. A quick adjustment to her position afforded a better view of the city gate and of her...friends.

But instead of the twisted purple mass of the demon, an elf in simple robes emerged from the city. The same very man she'd witnessed turn into a monster only a few minutes before, only now elven again. What in the—?

Leliana fought the urge to stand and get a better look at him. There was a certain shimmer about his entire body that almost demanded she do so to sate her curiosity, but still she remained. The temptation lingered. Oh Maker, did it _beg_ for her to give herself away, but she refused. As the elf approached the three below, she pulled back on her bowstring until her thumb was brushing over her cheek. Only a few more feet...

"Ah, Knight-Captain!"

Her eyes flicked over to Aedan only briefly, just long enough to see him shift uncomfortably. It seemed she wasn't the only one who'd rather follow than lead.

"It's been so long! How's the Circle holding up?"

He stepped past her building, she moved to the side, and let her arrow fly. The snap of her bowstring made her nerves tingle, and while she knew her aim was flawless, the head of her arrow still bounced harmlessly off the Runner.

So that's what was demanding her attention. He'd cast a shield on himself.

Without breaking stride, he launched an orb of crackling white lightning at her. Leliana's eyes went wide, and before realizing what was happening, she'd turned and leapt from the roof. It was too late, especially at that distance, and a tendril smacked off her back. Nothing more than a glancing blow, but even with that energy, she was still unconscious by the time she hit the ground.

* * *

When Leliana's eyes finally fluttered open again, the pain in her shoulder was overwhelming. So severe was it that a scream damn near tore its way from her throat, and would have, had she not bit her tongue. After a few seconds, the pain dulled to a familiarity, and she released the pressure on her tongue only to have a coppery taste fill her mouth. That's when she noticed it had been there from the beginning, but only now renewed.

As soon as she tried to push herself to her knees, the pain in her back was greeted by a searing pain in her side, one that gnawed its way straight to her chest. A hand caught her shoulder and attempted to ease her back down, but despite her injuries, Leliana's reflexes were still in good enough condition to swat them away.

"Relax." A breath of relief escaped her; it was Aedan. "How are you feeling?"

"Like hell," she replied. "What happened?" There was a pause; he didn't want to answer. It lasted so long that she could feel the panic rising in her chest. "Aedan?" How strange it was to be so desperate for the man's presence.

"The Runner got away," he said finally. "He took Leon. Something about a..." He trailed off and audibly swallowed. "Well, I'm gathering their plans for Leon end rather unpleasantly. Kent had apparently been setting Leon up from the beginning. I don't think he knew about you and your...enhancements."

Leliana tampered the mounting panic at the mention of Leon. She didn't want to think about what might be in store for him. "And Edmund?"

"He's...he's not in much better shape than you." That could be dealt with later, she supposed.

"What about you?"

"Couple of bruises, wounded pride. He knocked me out first, probably thought he killed me too. Damn near did." She could practically hear the sad grin when he spoke again. "Thank the Maker you gave me that lyrium. It saved my life."

She could be grateful for that. Oh yes. Just hearing his voice when she awoke had done wonders to soothe her frayed nerves. "Where's Ed?"

"Outside," Aedan answered. "The shack was abandoned, but...there's only one bed, and you stood a better chance at surviving your wounds than he did." Her heart dropped. Edmund was...he was dying? Oh Maker. She couldn't imagine what Aedan had gone through, running back and forth to care for the both of them despite his own injuries. But if Ed was _worse_ off than she was... He probably didn't have a lot of time left, and Leliana couldn't leave it at that, no words said. It was terrifying to be alone when you thought you were going to die. Leliana knew that fear well.

"Help me up," she croaked.

"Leliana..."

"Now, Aedan."

He sighed. "It'll only agitate your wounds." But he didn't argue any further; he simply looped an arm around her torso, carefully pulling her up onto her knees, and then helping her into a sitting position. It was only then did she realize she was shirtless, covered entirely in bandages. She went to move her left arm, but it felt dried and caked, and something gave. It hurt. Something leaked from her wounded flesh and ran down her back, but it was stopped at her spine by the linen.

"Who..." Her throat felt unnaturally dry.

Aedan, however, seemed to understand regardless. "I dressed your wounds. Most of your armor was shot. I, uh..." She couldn't see his face, but she was positive he was blushing. She could feel heat in her own cheeks as well.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." Small trace of a smile.

When her eyes finally came into focus, she could see calling this place a shack was gracious. There was barely any room for the two of them, let alone a third. While she hated it, Leliana understood Aedan leaving Edmund outside. She just hoped he'd spent more time on him than her, though she knew the answer to that without having to ask.

"Are you ready?" Leliana gave a terse nod and Aedan took her hands in his, pulling her onto her feet a moment later. She collapsed against his chest with a yelp of pain, tears springing unbidden to her eyes, and felt his arms go around her waist all in the same instant. He was careful not to touch her upper back, but instead holding her upright gingerly, like he feared she'd break if he put even a minute amount of pressure on her.

She looked up at him. Bandage around his forehead and covering an eye. An entire strip of linen running up his hand and past his elbow. She wasn't sure, but she thought she saw the hint of one peeking up from under his shirt collar. The lighting was too dim, probably late at night.

Then she felt him moving against her, pulling off the shirt she was leaning on to pull it over her head. "I haven't been able to get back into the city to find some clothes, but you shouldn't be walking outside like...er...like that."

Her suspicions were confirmed; beneath her hands was even more linen, covering most of his chest. It must've been difficult to dress his own wounds. And he claimed to have gotten the best of it.

"Are you...?"

"It's just a few scratches," he assured her. Aedan cleared his throat before she could pry, slinging his arm around her waist for support. Then he began the walk to one of the doors, presumably the one leading out back. Leliana couldn't imagine him leaving Ed out front. At least in the back Aedan would be able to deal with Ed's wounds privately.

He shouldered them through the door before nudging it shut. On her right was a small lean-to, clearly fashioned and thrown together recently, and within a matter of minutes. A piece of cloth was pulled taut over the ramshackle roof, and as soon as Leliana's foot hit the ground, she understood why. Mud. It had been raining. The cloth had been a weak attempt to keep some of the moisture off the injured man that dwelled within.

"I'll be just inside," Aedan assured her. "Do you need my help, or...?"

Leliana shook her head. "I'll be fine, thank you."

Aedan gave her a rueful smile before retreating. Her arm instinctively flew across her ribs as a lance of fiery pain shot through her abdomen. The shirt Aedan had stuck on her was far too big and scratchy, and didn't help the sensation spreading across her torso. It was like any small amount of touch would burn, and she _loathed_ that sort of thing. It would always come out of nowhere to attack her, but she supposed there was a cause now.

"Ed?"

"Over here." His voice sounded drier than dust, drier than her own. Regardless, Leliana followed the sound, and stooped a bit to find him. When she saw his condition...she choked on her next breath.

Edmund was propped up against the wall, arm slung over his ribs in a fashion similar to her own. His forehead was covered by a bandage, and one of his eyes was swelled shut, covered in small cuts and a bruise as big as her fist. There was a hastily applied bandage and salve on the side of his neck, and while the rest of him was covered by a thin blanket probably looted from the rest of the shack, Leliana's imagination could fill in the blanks for her. The exposed arm was covered in a burn; it extended past his shoulder and went across his chest, though how far was unknown to her.

"Maker's breath."

The man cracked a smile and let out a dry, humorless laugh. "It's not as bad as it looks, I swear." She didn't know how he managed to string together such a flawless sentence.

"Ed...I don't know what to say."

A sigh escaped him. It sounded more like a death rattle, the all too familiar sound of someone she was close to dying. This couldn't be happening. Not again. "By all things holy, don't do what your templar did and tell me I'll be fine. We both know I'm not going to make it."

Leliana's eyes widened and she did a double take. "What makes you say that?"

" _Look_ at me!" he exclaimed. The effort of that outburst alone caused him to cough up a wad of blood and spit. "I'm amazed I've stuck it out this long. I had to. Had to...had to tell you."

She looked around, though unsure for what, and crept a bit closer to him. "Tell me what?"

A look of regret and sadness passed over him, and Leliana got the feeling she wasn't going to like what she heard. "I...Kent... I'm so sorry, Leliana. It's my fault. He..." The man choked on a sob and several tears rolled down his cheeks, splashing off the blanket. "I helped him draw the others away. Armand...oh Maker, I'm sorry. I helped Kent kill him. I was going to hell him kill Leon, but..."

She reeled. How did she know she wasn't going to like that confession?

"They're dead because of me," Ed said. Another cry escaped him, but no matter how much Leliana wanted to hate him in that moment, no matter how much she wanted to blame him for Armand's death, she couldn't. "I realized too late what Kent was doing. By the time I had...Leon had already decided it was time to come looking for you and Jasper. Kent was going to kill all of you." He started shaking, body racking in time with his sobs, and Leliana found her hand going out to his shoulder, the one she hoped was uninjured. He didn't wince, so she assumed she chose correctly.

"Ed, it's all right."

"No," he said defiantly. "No, it's not. Everyone's dead. Leon's going to... The Runner's going to do something worse than kill him. I tried, I tried so many times to tell him we should go back to Liam and recommend an Exalted March..." Edmund shook his head and, mustering whatever strength he had left, locked a hand around Leliana's elbow. "You _have_ to go back. Ferelden's lost. There's nothing you can do."

He coughed and shuttered a few times, eyes drooping shut, but Leliana gripped his other shoulder. "Ed? Ed! Ed, come on! Please!" She could feel the panic rising in her chest again.

"I've seen the mages," he breathed. His voice sounded hoarse, and each breath was accompanied by that terrifying wheeze. He wasn't going to last much longer. "I'm not...not sure even a March would be enough..." His eyes glazed over, staring off. "Go back to Orlais. Please. Don't stay here to die." They flicked back over to catch hers. A rueful look passed over him and his grasp on her arm tightened just a bit. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry, Leliana. For everything. I cost our friends their lives..."

"You couldn't have known."

"Still my fault." His voice was barely a whisper. Each breath was labored. "Should've...should've done something..." His grip loosened. "You can't let them win."

"I won't, Ed. I promise. Just stay with me!"

Such a small, almost nonexistent smile. "You know...you're not as bad as you try to be." Before she could reply, he said, "I'm so sorry." The sentence fell from his lips like a chant, weakening in fervor and strength until he fell silent.

Edmund's hand fell to his side. Blood-splattered. Burned. Gone.

And Leliana felt tears rolling down her cheeks.

* * *

It was high time Aedan got around to getting back into Amaranthine, but when he snuck out to check, the portcullis was still down, and archers were still standing watch above the gate. Whatever had happened when Leliana met the Runner must've been devastating enough that Howe didn't want anyone inside of his city. He'd probably ask her when she came back inside.

But a pride demon? His mind was still reeling. He could scarcely believe his eyes when he saw the elf, one of the Alienage kids he and Marcus had brought in years ago, transform into the demon without a second thought. And, according to Edmund's retelling, he went right back to his elfy self not long after knocking Aedan unconscious.

Aedan could handle pride demons. What he _couldn't_ handle was the going back and forth thing. Was that even possible? He'd never seen it before. It was...unnatural to even speak of.

He busied himself with removing the bandage around his eye. The wound wasn't too debilitating, but it was placed so awkwardly that it was hard to care for. Most of his time, when not caring for Leliana or Edmund, was spent treating the gash that crossed his eye. How he managed to escape that hit without any serious damage to his vision was beyond him, but if the Maker was going to grace him with that, then he wouldn't question it.

Having run out of clean linen the previous day, Aedan was forced to set aside the strip he removed. His fingers gingerly proded the gash parallel to his nose, wincing when he touched a particularly sensitive spot. He didn't quite remember how he'd even got the injury in the first place, but it would definitely scar, and it would definitely hurt for days to come. What little he could remember of the fight included him being backhanded by the Runner into a hovel similar to the one they were squatting in now. From the best he could tell, the ridges and spines running up the demon's arm was the cause of the gash. After that, it got too fuzzy and gave him headaches trying to think.

Aedan fished around in his belongings for the pain-killing salve. It was, naturally, buried in the bottom of his satchel, and took forever for him to locate. Very little was left, as he and Leliana had used it during their forays underground, and he'd smeared it on her minor wounds the day before. Edmund had refused any of it, saying it was pointless to waste on a dead man, and was oddly content to remain outside.

Had it not been so valuable, Aedan might have used it on Leliana's burns, or on his own. Well...he _did_ try it on his burn. Just in case, just so he'd know if it was safe. When it made his burn flare up, he decided that would probably be best for minor cuts and scrapes.

As he ran his finger across the substance, he grumbled, "Fucking pride demons. Damn them all to the void." He snapped the lid back on before carefully applying the salve to his face. It stung, but just as quickly as the sting came, it was replaced by a numbing effect, and he was grateful. If only he didn't have to leave it covered...

A groan of annoyance escaped Aedan's throat as he waited for the salve to dry. Never in his entire life had he felt so useless and weak than when he woke up with a half-dead Seeker recruit pulling him to safety. Aedan didn't know Edmund, but the man had put a lot of his energy into getting him out of the street. It spoke volumes of him, of his personality, and he wondered why Leliana or Jasper could've thought he betrayed them.

Then he remembered thinking the same about Leon, the man who leapt to his side to kill another he called friend, and Aedan decided it was a matter of perspective. He imagined Leliana and Jasper both would do something similar. Keep the ally alive, kill the enemy. Basic survival skills.

The sound of the back door opening caused his head to snap up. Leliana staggered inside a moment later, looking to be in the exact condition he expected. He didn't know what exactly happened to her, but from the burns on her torso, he suspected the Runner's lightning bolt had connected at one point. Evidently, it hadn't hit her straight on, or she'd be dead, but a glancing blow was probable.

"Edmund is dead." Her voice sounded empty, hollow.

"I—"

"Don't tell me you're sorry," she snapped. "I'm just as sorry as you are. He might've been a little dramatic, but he was the best of us."

"Are you all right?"

She didn't reply. Instead, she opted to sit next to him on the pathetic excuse for a bed that had been left behind. "They got to him, too." Aedan had a pretty good idea of what she was talking about and put a comforting hand on her shoulder, refraining from giving it a squeeze even though he was tempted to. "How many of us will fall victim to this?" He didn't answer, deciding she wouldn't want his dry humor at the moment.

"He saved us both," Aedan said. "That's got to count for something."

"Oh, I suppose it does," Leliana replied. "After all, he claimed to have seen the error in his ways, though I suspect it was said to make me pity him. Kent was never that insane, and we know they bind their templars to the Runner."

"You think he was bound?"

"That, or Kent was just his puppet as well, and Edmund was the leak to begin with. Not vice versa like he was telling me."

Aedan frowned. "Or you just didn't know Kent as well as you thought."

She stiffened under his hand and he pulled away. "How—"

"You're not perfect, Leliana. Your assessments of people won't always be flawless, and you won't always be able to know what they're going to do. It's entirely plausible they kept Kent and Edmund loose so they'd function better. It's entirely possible that Kent was always a psychopath and kept it hidden from the rest of you."

She sighed. "You're right, you know. I should stop expecting the best or worst out of everyone."

"You'd be a lot happier if you did," Aedan agreed. "Nothing is plain and simple, and you know that. There's always going to be a middle ground."

Surprisingly, she laughed. "Yes, now stop rubbing it in. I know you're right and I'm wrong."

Aedan blinked, but slowly allowed a grin to creep over his features. It tugged at his wound, not that he cared; it felt good to smile. "Can't handle it, Leli?"

She scoffed. "You wish." Before he could continue, Leliana turned his head towards her, and began inspecting the gash for herself. It became apparent that she didn't want to joke around after what just happened, but neither did she want to outright discuss it. Instead, she wanted to fuss over his injuries. "Can you see well?"

"I can see perfectly fine," Aedan said matter-of-factly.

The ghost of a smile tugged at her lips and his mind drifted back to their kiss two days ago. He _almost_ debated about kissing her now, but decided against it. It was hardly appropriate, given their current situation.

"That's good," she said, "but it'll leave a nasty scar."

"Not like I don't already have plenty of those," Aedan retorted.

"Quit your whining." It was a half-hearted order, one that brought a smile to Aedan's face. It was familiar. She said it to him several times over the course of the last two months, typically as a joke and a way to let some of the tension fade. And like always, it worked wonders to diffuse the situation. Perhaps he'd been wrong in his previous assessment.

Leliana reached past him for the linen and frowned slightly. "This isn't clean."

"Well..." Aedan shrugged sheepishly. "You needed it more than I do."

Another sigh, but under a much different tone. Disbelief, maybe? He couldn't tell. Her expression was guarded, but he thought he saw a flash of vulnerability. Whatever it was, it was gone as quickly as it had come.

She scooted closer and sat up as straight as her own injuries would allow, and then, without warning, started wrapping the bandage around his head. He grunted in surprise, but allowed her to, holding his eye shut while she worked.

Hesitantly, he asked, "So...what _did_ happen with the Runner?"

Leliana froze for a moment, but resumed almost just as fast. "I'd gone up to the ramparts."

"You did?"

"The guards didn't lock the door very well," she supplied. "It didn't take much work to get there, and since I could get in without any effort, I assumed anyone with a pick could get up there as well. I assumed correctly."

"He was up there." It wasn't a question; it was fact.

"Yes," she said. She tugged on his shoulder to pull him closer, make it easier to wrap the bandage. "He was supposed to meet Kent from what I understand. We just interrupted their...transaction."

"Transaction?"

"Kent was going to hand over Leon in exchange for a position of power _when_ they succeed in bringing the Chantry down."

He didn't like the way she said that. "I still don't understand how they plan to do that."

"Simple," Leliana said. "Cause enough havoc and kill enough people, and the masses will blame the Chantry for not controlling their mages. Then they send in their 'purified' templars and make it look convincing, and the people will remove the Chantry for them."

"Keep it stupid simple," Aedan surmised.

"Exactly."

He sat back when she was finished. It was strange looking at her with his right eye only. "So the Runner?"

"There's not really much to tell," Leliana admitted. "He transformed into the demon. I ran, he leapt down after me. Kept running. Found the three of you, and here we are." She hesitated for a moment, and Aedan held his tongue to see what she had to say. "You killed him, then? Kent?"

"More or less. It was Leon in the end. I got distracted."

"I see." After a long pause, she added, "I suppose it's fitting one of us would kill the bastard."

Aedan smiled ruefully. "I agree."

A comfortable silence lapsed over them and Aedan elected it was time for him to get some rest. Leliana was safe, or as safe as she could get, and there was a good chance she'd recover now that she was up and moving around.

He got up and stretched, yawning. "I'm going to get some sleep. I'll—"

He was stopped by a hand catching his, pulling him back towards the bed. When he looked down at her, he caught a glimpse of that vulnerability again, and the sad smile returned. "Stay, please."

"Afraid you'll miss me?" he teased.

Leliana actually looked embarrassed. "N-no! It's just...I'm wearing your shirt and you shouldn't get sick."

Aedan's smile turned into a smirk. "Uh-huh. That's exactly it."

But without argument, he sat back down and rolled onto his side, giving her the space to join him before throwing the blanket over them both. She rolled against his chest and was asleep within seconds, and Aedan couldn't help the stupid grin that overtook his features. Just as he drifted off, he silently thanked the Maker for the woman in his arms.


	26. Chapter 26

"What the hell do you mean 'the Chantry wouldn't listen'?"

Jasper threw his hands up in irritation. "Exactly what it sounds like!"

Cassandra let out a disgusted grunt. She started to speak, but thought better of it, and resigned herself to a groan. Her fist slammed off the table and Jasper could literally see the tension rolling off the Seeker. He stood by, just as irritated as she was, but waiting for a plan of some sort. After all, he wasn't the one in charge anymore.

"I will...speak to the Revered Mother," Cassandra said after a moment. "You two, scour the market for any sign of where the mage came from." She gestured to Cullen and Solona, who were presently standing near the doorway with Damien. The young man was the source for the entire mess to begin with, having been attacked earlier in the day and only barely fending the mage off until Jasper went out to look for him. The templars hadn't been able to kill the insane girl that had started a murderous rampage, and as soon as Damien even remotely tried to help, which he did, they cornered him too. It took Jasper's intervention to keep him from being killed.

"And what about us?" Jasper chanced as he watched the young templar leave with his...friend.

"You and Damien need to make sure this won't happen again," Cassandra answered. "And...to make sure Ferelden's monarchs are safe. If that mage's information was correct..." She trailed off and Jasper shuddered as he recalled the haunting letter.

 _Five hundred sovereigns on both heads of Ferelden. "To the victor go the spoils."_

 _—R_

He didn't want Leliana to have been right. He didn't want to see Ferelden collapse, but that's what it looked like the mages were striving for. And so far, they were succeeding.

Jasper never considered himself patriotic until very, very recently.

If Ferelden fell, that would open up the gateway for the rest of Thedas. Thinking of Ferelden being in the hands of blood mages and crazed templars alone made him sick, but thinking of the rest of Thedas... No, he really didn't want to even consider that as a possibility. He _wouldn't_ let that happen. He'd rather die.

"It'll be done," Jasper said. He turned on his heel and started for the door, but Cassandra called out to him.

"You might want to put your armor back on."

He nodded. "And if...by some good grace, Leliana returns?"

"Then we see what she has and we go from there," Cassandra answered. "But until it happens, consider your friend dead."

He nodded again.

He didn't want to believe it, but they'd lost a lot of good friends to these blood mages, and no one was infallible. Leliana and Aedan... They could be part of a rapidly growing number.

* * *

It took some weaseling. Lots of weaseling. Lots of persuading and making promises that couldn't be kept. And yet, Leliana had somehow managed to get her and Aedan horses from Amaranthine's stables...for free.

Riding with her current injuries wasn't easy. Convincing the Chantry to give them clothing was just as difficult, if not more. Aedan ended up being the one to pull _those_ strings, and came out with a set of armor to boot. Typical templar armor, blue, red, and gold robes beneath the silver plate mail. It was a spare set of armor should Amaranthine ever get a Knight-Captain of its own, and he was lucky to have been the man they gave it to. The Knight-Commander was glad to, actually. Long as Aedan used it when he was killing mages. Leliana got the distinct feeling that Amaranthine's Knight-Commander was one of those templars who hated mages more than they hated following orders.

Aedan had yet to put the armor on, preferring to wait until they reached Denerim to get into the robes that would restrict him from horseback. Leliana, meanwhile, just left the idea of armor behind, and was sitting on the roan's back in simple clothing. Even with the basic medical attention they'd been given by the Chantry sisters, Leliana's burns would still take weeks to fully heal, and Aedan's eye would need to be constantly bandaged for at least another fortnight.

Neither of them were in fighting condition, but the horses would give them the chance to run for it should the need arise. Unfortunately, if anyone was smart, they'd just attack them during one of their many breaks. The mounts cut their travel time well over halfway, taking them a day to reach Denerim from Amaranthine if they played their cards right, but their injuries forced them to stop and give the rubbing and bouncing a break.

Leliana slowed her horse for one such pause. Aedan rode ahead before stopping, wheeling his horse around in an arc and trotting back to her side, watching with his brows furrowed in quiet concern. His wounds weren't nearly as severe as her own, mostly cuts and bruises, and he admitted to having an easier go of riding than she did.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

Leliana ran a hand through her hair. It would need to be cut at some point, having grown out past her shoulders. She always hated how quickly her hair grew. "I don't know. How can something hurt so much that I can't pinpoint where the pain starts and stops?"

He gave her a small smile and placed his hand on her knee. About the only place he _could_ touch without hurting her any more than necessary. "All wounds heal in time."

"Only the physical ones," she mumbled. That made her think of everything she tried to avoid: relationships, romantic or friendly, torture...Denerim. How the hell could she look at that city again without feeling some sort of pain?

Aedan must've noticed the small grimace that appeared on her lips. "What's on your mind?"

Leliana blinked, tore her eyes from the horizon, and looked back to him, flattening her expression immediately. "I'll...tell you later."

"You say that a lot," Aedan remarked, "and then never tell me."

She sighed. "I'm sorry."

"We have time, Leliana. What are you thinking about?"

"It's nothing," she insisted. "Denerim just brings back painful memories."

Aedan's brows furrowed, but he nodded. "Well...if you need anything, I..." He scratched the back of his head and flicked his wrist helplessly. "You know what I mean."

"Thank you, Aedan."

He just nodded again. "Ready to get going? We're almost there."

"Ready as I'll ever be."

After sharing a reassuring smile, Aedan turned his horse about and kicked its flanks. He took off down the road, and with another sigh, Leliana followed.

Far ahead, miles and miles away, she could faintly see the outline of the same forest she first met Aedan in. The Brecilian Forest. Being able to see it meant they were nearing Denerim, which was good, but at the same time, she couldn't shake the urge to avoid the city at all costs. She had a bad feeling gnawing away in the back of her mind; it only got worse the closer the came to the city. Something was going to happen, and she suspected she wouldn't like it.

It didn't take much longer for the city to come into view. Just beyond was the northern most reaches of the Brecilian Forest, stretching over the hilltops to have the tips of their trees swallowed by fog. To her, it looked like where the world ended. There was such a foreboding feeling, even at this distance, that Leliana wanted nothing to do with that wood, or the road that led through it.

She recalled a similar feeling from her first foray there. It always felt like something was watching you. Even the trees gave off that feeling. There was something wrong within its depths, but Leliana refused to be the one to figure out what it was, let alone go out and actually solve the problem. She had enough problems with the mages anyway. If the issue was really so debilitating, the Dalish who were rumored to dwell within could fix it.

"Looks like it's going to rain," Aedan commented as she rode up beside him. He was shielding his eyes from the rays of sunlight leaking through the clouds, having stopped to survey the land ahead. "But it always does that."

"There are _worse_ things than rain, I suppose," she admitted.

"True," he agreed. "Come on. It's not much farther."

"I wasn't the one who stopped this time."

He chuckled and shook his head. "No, but I bet I'll beat you there." Leliana's brows shot up, but before she could reply, he had already taken off down the road, leaving her behind in a small dust cloud.

After coughing up a lung, Leliana's head snapped up and her horse bolted after his. Unfortunately, it seemed like Aedan's mount was the faster one, and was always one step ahead of hers. Aedan noticed as well, shooting her a grin over his shoulder. His horse put on a burst of speed, and suddenly, it didn't matter who the better rider was (though she assumed she was). Her horse couldn't catch up no matter how much it quickened its pace, and by the time they _did_ rejoin him, he was waiting at the bend in the road that would take them to the city. If they continued on this path, they'd eventually enter the forest, and that was the absolute last thing Leliana wanted.

"After you," Aedan said, gesturing to Denerim.

"Then I'll beat you."

He scoffed. "I already beat you and you know it as well as I do."

"Keep dreaming," she retorted, waving a hand dismissively.

Aedan laughed, setting his horse off at a trot. Leliana's horse matched the other horse's pace easily, and they approached together. Her eyes caught the closed portcullis, the gate locked behind it, and the two wary guards watching them. She frowned a bit and elbowed Aedan.

"You see that?"

He frowned as well, but nodded. "Something's going on."

"I don't like the looks of it," she admitted. "Amaranthine closed her gates and it took days to get back in."

"I'm sure they can be reasoned with." Leliana wasn't as sure as he was. "Come on," he repeated. "Let's see what's happened."

* * *

If Jasper ever thought he could hate nobles more than he currently did, he was beyond wrong. As he and Damien stormed from the palace's gates, the temptation to punch the smug smirk off their "escort" was overwhelming. The damn guard had been the one to tell them the king wouldn't believe them, that they were just stupid for trying, and he'd been right. He seemed rather proud of himself for that.

Jasper clenched his fist. "You don't have to—"

"King Cailan's orders," he said. "Get your asses moving." He shoved Damien for emphasis, roughly, and Jasper's temper flared. Damien was far younger than either of them, and it was so painfully obvious that the guard merely did it to get his point across.

Jasper started towards him, but Damien fixed him with a look, and he pulled up short. If the kid knew better, he should know better.

He grunted and about faced, then marched off, Damien rushing to catch up. The guard followed their movements perfectly, only stopping when the pair had left the fortified walls of the palace. He stood to watch as they quickly disappeared from sight.

As soon as they were alone, Jasper reached out and punched the nearest building. "This is so pointless!"

Damien jumped, spooked, and cautiously said, "Not everyone is going to listen?" It came out a question, frightful and confused, and Jasper sighed, shoulders sagging. Damien was a jumpy kid, wasn't he? He'd have to be more careful around him.

"That's because half the people in this damn country only have empty space between their ears," he replied, grumbling to himself. "Come on. Let's go tell Cassandra. She'll want to hear this."


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N:** **Allow me to apologize for how long it took to get this chapter up! April is always super busy for me, and I may or may not have gotten distracted by a certain drell in Mass Effect *shifty eyes*. Not to mention the painful case of writer's block I've had for this story for the last couple of weeks. None of that helped me write... BUT! It's going away, thank God (I actually wrote most of this yesterday and today, the entire Aedan section to be exact). I'm trying to alternate between this and my Thane thing, y'know, to help keep the brain flowing, but Thane is pretty freaking distracting!**

 **Anyway, I'm sorry for the lateness of this update, but here it is, and I hope you enjoy it! Thanks again for reading!**

* * *

Denerim's market was exactly the same as she remembered it...save the templars and guards crawling over it. There were few citizens actually out and about, and those that were tended to keep to themselves and avoid eye contact. They hurried past the guards keeping watch, bumped into the roaming templars and practically tripped over themselves to get away. Anyone who ran...the templars caught them, dragged them off to the Chantry.

"Well..." Aedan sighed, offering a weak attempt at a smile. "At least we know we're headed in the right direction?"

"I suppose," Leliana agreed. A quick glance around told her it would be wiser to go and find a place to sleep before tackling the mess laid out in front of them. Aedan was already strolling through the stalls, headed for a building set off to the side, and she recognized it. It was an inn, the Gnawed Noble Tavern if her memory served. A guard was standing next to the door, gave them a suspicious glare as they entered. Leliana shot off the darkest look she could manage, but it wasn't much; a thin, red haired woman in rags masquerading as clothing wasn't going to be very intimidating.

That being said, she stood back and tried to look as pathetic as possible while Aedan negotiated with the barkeep for a room. Her little act seemed to touch the man—surprisingly enough—and he gave Aedan a small (emphasis on the small) discount on the price. As the man rummaged around beneath the bar, Aedan leant back to whisper, "Running pretty low on funds."

"I'm not surprised," Leliana replied.

When the rounded man reappeared, he'd dropped their gold into a small bag and handed Aedan the key to their room. She eyed the pouch, watched carefully as he tucked it away. At this point, Leliana didn't consider herself above stealing. Then again...she never really did, though she had stopped since joining the Seekers. There wasn't much call for thievery in the Chantry.

She followed Aedan down the hall to the far side of the tavern. More guards. They were stationed at the entryway, and near a door at the very end of the hallway. The one stood stock-straight with his arms folded over his massive chest, face hidden beneath a typical helmet for a Fereldan knight, and didn't move a muscle, not even when Leliana openly stared at him. It was more or less her attempt to get the man to even act alive, but with the lighting and the depth of the helmet, it looked like the eyeholes led into oblivion.

She swallowed. That wasn't an entirely pleasant thought. What if he wasn't really a he, and was really some sort of thing cooked up by the mages?

Or what if she was just slowly losing her mind the way Marjolaine did? The latter seemed far more likely than the former. What was if she said to Aedan before, "a little paranoia never hurt anybody"? Or had Aedan said that to her? She didn't remember, though it was more likely she said it to him. It didn't sound like something he'd say.

Whatever the case, the paranoia was quickly becoming a problem.

Aedan ushered her into their room. There was nothing more satisfying than hearing the lock click shut behind her, or the feeling of relief when she collapsed on the straw mattress. It wasn't much, as the class of the tavern was that so a commoner could afford it, but it was more than enough, and Leliana felt like she could die happily on the bed. She was so exhausted and so sore that she didn't even notice the metallic rustling coming from across the room. Well, she did notice. She didn't exactly care. Aedan could handle whatever it was while she laid about.

It ceased eventually, but was followed by obnoxious footsteps, and then the feeling of hands on her waist. She stiffened and her hand snapped forward, catching one of the offending appendages. As her eyes cracked open, Leliana saw Aedan staring at her, a small smirk on his face as he waved the pommel of her sword. He'd...taken off her belt?

"Didn't think that would be too comfortable to sleep in," he said softly.

Leliana's eyes narrowed in the slightest, but she released him. "Are you going out?"

He nodded, mouth set in a grim line. "Someone has to find out what's going on, and you're not in the condition to do it."

She wanted to sit up. Part of her begged to move, cried to do something and solve the mess they'd gotten themselves into, but she stayed where she was. Aedan was right. Exhausted and wounded as she was, Leliana would be little more than a hindrance to him, and if by some Maker-forsaken mistake, he got into a fight, he'd be better off on his own.

"Just be careful."

Aedan smirked again as he set her sword by the head of the bed, within arm's reach for her. "Good thing there's no use arguing with you." He was out the door a few seconds later, leaving her to her own devices, and while the thought of trailing him lingered, she didn't have the energy to stand. Riding so far in such a short amount of time had taken its toll on her. All she could think of was sleep, and despite resisting, she was asleep within minutes.

* * *

It felt good to be back in a set of templar armor. There was something pleasing about it, something that brought a feeling of nostalgia. He didn't know what it was, but he felt immensely more comfortable in the heavy plate than he did in lightweight chain.

The first thing Aedan did was go to the Chantry. He was a templar by blood; it was ingrained in him. Any templar anywhere was to report to the local Knight-Commander and Revered Mother before beginning their assigned task. At the moment, however, Aedan had none, and needed to know what was going on before he could even start doing something. After the scene in the market, there must've been some sort of prior incident to warrant such action. He didn't know templars to be so...forthright. Abusive and cruel in extreme cases, yes, but manhandling citizens? No. That was a first, even for him.

As Aedan strode across the open hall, he saw templars standing guard over people huddled together on the floor. Some were crying. Most were scared senseless, simply doing what they could to remain out of sight. It made him sick to his stomach. Unless they were all proven blood mages, there was no reason whatsoever to be treating anyone like cattle.

Behind him, halfway across the room, he heard the doors creak open. Warm sunlight bathed his exposed neck and ears, and the sound of plated boots filled the area. Two templars; he stopped to look. Both were dragging in a girl no older than they were, late teens or early twenties. They were headed for the herd of people nearest to the door, intending to throw her there and leave her before going back into the market, but somehow, she managed to slip free. The templars reacted quickly; one sword was drawn, the other templar went to catch her.

Aedan bit his tongue, watched. Perhaps...

There was no pause. He was starting across the room the same second the templar recaptured her. But as soon as he saw energy begin to crackle in her hands, he stopped. The one bracing her hit her with his fist, hard, and she went limp, dazed. After they threw her to the floor, Aedan decided he didn't want to watch.

No longer did he care. If a mage prepared to attack a templar, the mage had to die. And she had just made that fatal mistake. But even to Aedan, this treatment was cruel and unnatural. Rounding up Fereldans who ran solely out of the fear that they were mages? How lucky did they have to be to catch an apostate?

He waved a dismissive hand at the scene and continued marching across the Chantry. An anguished cry went up from behind him, the sound of something fleshy and solid hitting the floor. Dead. The corralled city folk let out sobs and shocked gasps, but he didn't look. Didn't look at the renewed shouting. Didn't look at the small fight that broke out. Didn't look at the destruction and infighting that was being forced on them.

Leliana had told him this was the end goal of the mages. Break down all trust between the countrymen and the Chantry, and step in to solve the issue. Bring "loyal" templars, mages who were willing to help and heal, and who proved the Chantry wrong. Bring them to sow the discord and distrust even further, and then bring it all tumbling down.

She'd been right. He knew she would be, no matter how much he didn't want to admit it to himself. And yet, somehow, he imagined she would still find it in her to be merciful to a blood mage. Aedan wouldn't, couldn't, spare another mage who got in his way. Not after Marcus, not after turning the templars on the innocent in a fit of fear under the guise of protection. It sickened him, knowing Leliana was still soft and kind enough, Leliana the _Seeker,_ could still see the good in the world when he couldn't. Seekers were supposed to be monstrous beings that made templars look pathetic and weak, but all he got was the impression that he was a mindless killer, and that she was free to see and think and comprehend, all of it, on her own free will.

Simply put, Aedan was jealous, and he understood now. That underlying tone of hate that crept into her voice, the one she didn't even notice, when they'd spoken about the Chantry in Amaranthine. How disgusted she was with the way templars were treated, and even more so the way the mages were. He understood why she felt the way she felt. Despite everything, Leliana had come out of the last three months hating the Chantry more than she seemed to hate anything else, and Aedan was left as the loyal lap dog he was trained to be.

He wished he could see things the way she did. He wished he could have that half-hate for the Chantry that she did, the kind of hate that he couldn't admit to himself.

But Aedan wasn't that kind of man. He was too trusting. He saw the best in people and expected them to never change. It was foolish and naïve, and all too ridiculous an attitude to possess in the current state of Ferelden. He wanted to have that nature of subdued kindness, the lie Leliana wore more often than the truth she used to show.

He imagined she wished she was like him. How ironic, him wanting the cynical lie of a personality she had, and her wanting the kind truth he had. It made him grimace. Somewhere in there, Leliana had a hateful bone. It showed when it needed to, and cemented her hard, ice queen, bitchy façade as soon as it came into question. It helped her believe the lie she was living, and made her float in that grey area most people lived in.

Truth be told, he didn't understand her. She hated the Chantry to some, small, weird extent, but that was the only time Aedan had ever seen her so...hateful. Other times, Leliana hid her happy, carefree (maybe not so carefree anymore) self behind a mask of hate, spite, and anger. Rarely did she ever let her guard down enough to be herself, and whenever she did, it ended up blowing up around her.

Aedan frowned to himself. He'd started out comparing himself to her, then just got off on a tangent of trying to understand the way she thought.

For a moment, he simply stood there in the middle of the Chantry. The same Chantry Leliana would silently seethe over, the same one she wouldn't admit her hate for, the same Chantry Aedan was so reluctantly dedicated to. This was the same very building Aedan wanted so desperately to hate, and the same one he couldn't bring himself to turn his back on.

Then again, he supposed she couldn't either. She'd gone to the Chantry after a life she didn't want to remember, and found she hated it just as much as she hated being a bard. If he was being honest with himself, Aedan actually admired her for it, finding something in that hate to enjoy and take pride in. She thought mages needed protecting, so what did she do? Protect them. She thought templars overstepped their bounds, so she overstepped her own to knock some sense back into them.

And what did Aedan do? Suffer headaches and physical pain from an organization that was supposed to care for him. He had a reason to hate the Chantry, a personal, legitimate reason, unlike Leliana, who hated it silently for all the injustices it dealt on the whole of Thedas. Yet, somehow, all Aedan could do was make excuses.

Blood mages were running rampant, so roughing some people up wasn't a big deal. Searching for those blood mages was admirable, no matter how violent it could become.

So lost was he in his thoughts that he didn't hear the familiar sound of a man calling to him. Didn't see, didn't hear, didn't care. Aedan was in a sour mood, and whatever games the Revered Mother was going to undoubtedly play were going to be pointless wastes of time. He needed to know what had caused the templars to round up civilians so he and Leliana could _do_ something about it.

"Aedan!" A hand clamped down on his shoulder and he blinked, dragging himself back to reality. His eyes first hit the white eye painted onto the black armor, then the hazel eyes, followed by the sandy blond hair, and he, despite his mood, grinned broadly.

It was Jasper. He wore a grin as broad as Aedan's, just as toothy and just as surprised.

The Seeker walked up, lanky Damien shifting around nervously behind him, and clasped Aedan's forearm. Aedan returned the gesture, swallowing past the overwhelming relief threatening to spill over into a million questions. A quick once-over told him neither of the two were injured whatsoever; they actually looked like they'd settled in Denerim rather easily. Clean, armed. All good signs.

"It's good to see..." Jasper's jaw snapped shut as he tried to bite back a devilish smirk at the pun, and Aedan sighed. He gestured to the templar's face, bandaged and covered in road dust, and asked, "What happened to you?"

"It's a long story, but it's good to _see_ you," Aedan retorted, adding emphasis on the last few words. He was exhausted, but rest could wait for him. His injuries were minor compared to Leliana's, and he was more than capable of drawing his sword to defend himself...hopefully.

"Is Leliana...? She's all right?"

Aedan nodded. "She's alive, if that's what you're asking." He could see the alarm flash in Jasper's eyes and explained. "She's fine. Just banged up."

Several conflicting emotions passed over his face in the span of three seconds. Hurt, fear, worry, anger, confusion. Jasper probably had as many questions for Aedan as Aedan did for him. Their parties had been separated for well over a month, and in Jasper's case, it was safe to assume the other two had died. Aedan had believed _Jasper_ was dead, along with the rest of them, because mages had been running rampant in Amaranthine. Why would they do that if there was still someone trying to stop them?

"Listen, you have a lot of questions for us," Aedan said, "and we have plenty of our own for you." His eyes flicked to the mage hiding behind the armored man. Damien was watching Aedan carefully, afraid, but decided eyeing the templars around the building was a wiser choice. Aedan had proven he wasn't going to just jump the kid...unless he absolutely had to.

"Naturally," Jasper replied.

"But we need to know what the hell is going on." He gestured back at the whimpering crowd of people fervently. "What pushed the templars that far? They're just rounding up Fereldans if they so much as look at them in the wrong way!"

A sad, almost pitiful, sigh left Jasper's lips. "Can it wait?"

 _Why the hell do they always ask me that?_ Aedan wondered.

But, as always, he just nodded. He must've done something to give away his irritation because Jasper hurriedly explained. "Just know that shit's going down. Some _big_ shit, Aedan. The mages have lost it, and if we don't do this perfectly, we are so fucked that—" He cut himself off. "Well, I probably shouldn't be saying that in a Chantry." He scratched the back of his neck, checked for Damien, and leaned a little closer to Aedan. "This isn't a safe place to talk, either. Grab Leliana and follow us back to our place."

"I'm going to need more than that to get her up." A good enough lie, he supposed. And besides, it was only a half-lie. Not only would he need the prospect of fixing this mess to get Leliana out of bed, he also wanted to know he could trust them. A lot had happened over the time they were separated, and loyalties could've changed. Aedan didn't want to make a fatal mistake by trusting Jasper and Damien when they'd suddenly become the enemy.

"A few days ago, a blood mage started attacking people in the market," Jasper said, huffing. "It's been going downhill since. Is that satisfactory?"

Aedan nodded again. "Sounds like hell's broken loose."

Jasper snorted in half-amusement. "And we're going to need a lot of water to put out its fires."


End file.
